Loved the Stars too Fondly
by thatlittlegoodgirl
Summary: When Castiel traded places with his sister to save her life, he thought he would be a prisoner the rest of his life. Then entered Dean Winchester, who gave Castiel his freedom. Written for the Dean/Castiel Challenge 2014
1. Anna

A/N: I just wanted to give a special thanks to Brandon and Mariana, who were probably more excited about this fic to be completed than I was. Mary, if you're reading this, just know that you are too good for me.

I also want to thank my artist jaelijn for all the amazing artwork! Art Masterpost: |x|

You can also read it on LiveJournal and Ao3

And to everyone who's reading this, I hope you enjoy. Comments are always appreciated!

"Can you tell us a story?" The little girl looked expectantly at her mother as she nestled deeper into her quilts.

Her mother smiled fondly. "I think we have time for one. What kind would you like?"

The girl quickly sat up "A love story!"

"Eww, that's gross!" The girl's younger brother complained from the opposite side of the queen-sized bed. "I want an adventure story."

Their mother settled her young children before they became completely unwrapped from their blankets. The kids, still young enough to sleep beside one another in bed, eagerly waited for a story before sleep could take a hold of them. The mother didn't mind at all; it gave her the chance to spend some much needed time with her only children after a long stressful day.

"Now, don't move or no one will take you two to the festival tomorrow." She leaned over and kissed her children's foreheads, her long, dark blonde hair tickling their cheeks. "And don't worry. I know the perfect story."

The woman sat back up and cleared her throat. She was quite attached to this particular story and was glad to have the chance to tell it to her children.

"Most would say the Second Revolution started with the efforts of our fearless leaders. Others would say it was a combination of many factors, or destined to happen from the beginning. Those people were not entirely wrong, but for the select few that knew the truth, the catalyst for biggest revolution in the history of mankind started with an ordinary man on an ordinary day."

* * *

><p>Castiel was starting grow comfortable in his life. The same people doing the same things at the same time every day. He didn't have a reason to complain. Living with his sister, Anna, in the Countryside was indefinitely better than trying to live with his father and other siblings in the overstimulated Capital. He never wanted to bother Anna with the complaints he did have though, since his sister seemed to be unnaturally stressed in the last few always tried to kept to himself and stay out of the way, dividing his spare time between studying and riding his horse around the various farms near town.<p>

But he never actually went into the town or socialized with the people in it. Anna was the one who like to be around strangers; she would begged Castiel to make a friend or two every time she came back from a shopping trip. Castiel found friends complicated and required effort that he could be using to solidify his chances at graduating from Academy and becoming an Officer. The few times he had ventured into the village, Castiel stayed away from everyone, always keeping to the shadows around the edges of the square.

Every time Castiel found himself getting too close to someone that wasn't his sister, he pushed everyone away. He even distanced himself from his peers at the Academy. It was a place for training, not friendship.

Anna would joke that his people skills would start to rust if he didn't practice. The statement flustered Castiel and Anna always found it amusing.

Still Castiel didn't have any reason to complain. Things were a lot simpler in the Countryside. It was easier to see the black and white in life rather than the constant grayness of the Capital. The air in the Capital was a perpetually smoggy haze that cloaked the entire area, while the sky above the miles of farms was always a clear blue and had a vague scent of pine from the distant forest. It made it easier to think.

Anna's tiny two bedroom house sat in a grassy meadow just far enough away from the town and farms that they had plenty of privacy. Their little house felt more like home than any other place Castiel had lived, including his father's enormous penthouse that sat at the top of one of the tallest buildings constructed in the Capital. At his sister's house, Castiel could study in peace. The Capital always held too many distractions for him.

After another routine day, Castiel came home to Anna cooking dinner earlier than normal. Unlike Castiel, Anna didn't like set routines, it was one of the reasons she had a falling out with their father.

Castiel went to bathroom before talking to his sister. She couldn't stand when Castiel came back from riding, smelling like the stable and tracking dirt everywhere. He was fairly certain he had never done any of those things but didn't care to argue. Anna tended to win a majority of their fights.

Even from the bathroom, the aromas wafted in from the kitchen. Castiel had chosen to skip lunch in favor of spending more time in his work. His exams were coming up fast, and he didn't want to disappoint his father by not becoming a Union Officer. In fact, in Castiel's mind, not pleasing his father was far worse than not doing well on his test. It wasn't a secret how much effort his father had but into Castiel to get him to succeed. By the time Castiel had cleaned himself up, he was beyond ready to eat.

He entered the kitchen silently.

"Hey Castiel."

"Hello."

Anna didn't turn around from her place at the stove.

"How was your day?"

Every day she asked him the same question and everyday Castiel answered with the same answer. This time though, he felt like saying something different.

"It was just the same as any other day, Anna," He sat down in his normal seat at the table off to the side of the kitchen. "Do you think it's going to change?"

"Of course things change, that's just how they work. And since you're asking, I think things are going to change for the better pretty soon."

Castiel assumed she was talking about his Academy training. If he continued on track as he had been, Castiel would graduate by the end of the year.

"I also talked to Father today." The moment the words left her mouth, Castiel's attention was focused on his sister. Anna did whatever she could to evade talking to their father. "As soon as I picked up, I was reprimanded for not answering any of his other calls. Then, he informed me that he wouldn't be able to see you when you passed the exam and graduated. Apparently there are rumors of revolts in a few outlining cities. He did mention that he was proud of you and something about sending Michael in his place."

"No, I don't want Michael to come." Anger flared out inside Castiel at the mention of his oldest brother.

Everything Anna said sounded exactly like their father. He always made promises he couldn't keep, but he still said he was proud. Not to mention the fact that there was always a constant threat of uprisings and revolts, although no one knew if they were even true or not.

Anna turned around and flashed a smile at him. "Good. I don't think I could handle being in Michael presence for more than a few minutes."

She set down plates and went back for the rest of the meal.

"Anna, he's our brother."

"I know Castiel, but he doesn't feel our brother. He's more like another one of Father's Officers than our brother."

His sister sat in the seat across from Castiel. He knew how Anna felt about their family, and she never tried to hide her resentment towards them. She was only close to her mother, Castiel, and another one of their brothers, Gabriel. But neither Anna nor Castiel had seen Gabriel since he had run away from home a few years before. Somehow Anna remained hopeful that he would return one day, Castiel never told her that he disagreed.

She placed the last pot in the middle of the table, and then lifted the lid. Castiel looked at all the food on the table, it was enough to feed the two of them for a week. It must have also cost his sister a fortune.

"Why did you make so much food?." Even though he was concerned, Castiel's stomach growled in anticipation.

Anna shrugged. "I couldn't decide what to make. Now eat something before it gets cold."

Castiel took a moment before adding a bit of each dish to his empty plate.

Thinking about Michael and the rest his family brought a question to Castiel's mind. Something that had been nagging at him for a long time. "Anna, why did Father never send you to Academy to become an Officer?"

His sister's face fell subtly. She placed her fork on the table and swallowed before she spoke. "I did go to Academy at first. Just like all our other siblings. But I hated it and Father knew I hated it. Then once Gabriel left, Father didn't want to fight me anymore and allowed me to live with Mother. That's why you also had to leave and go back to live with Father in the Capital earlier than expected. Believe it or not, but Father really does love you, and he didn't want to risk an outside influence on you."

Castiel wasn't satisfied with the answer. "If he's afraid of me rebelling against him, then why am I here and not with him in the Capital?"

"He knows that in time you will do great things, and I know that too. The fact that he still allows you to live with me must show how much he wants you to succeed." Anna sighed. "Now enough talk about family. You really do need to eat before the food gets cold, you also need to get a haircut before the Fall Harvest."

"Okay then, we'll go at the end of the week." His older sister's smile returned. "And please, eat. I don't want all my hard work to go to waste."

Castiel took a bite after loading his plate full of more food. The siblings ate in relative silence. With the talk of their complicated family behind them, they only spoke of the latest gossip swirling around town, and the fact that the local farmers were having a hard time keeping up with the increasing demands for more crops.

Anna believed the people of the Western Federation wouldn't have to worry too much longer. She spoke as if she knew what was going to happen in the future. With ever changing Union laws and the constant threat of either a revolt or war a between nations, Castiel wonder how Anna she could be so sure in something that might never happen.

When they finished eating, Anna left Castiel to clean the kitchen. As Anna walked up the stairs, she told Castiel that she was tired and wanted to go to bed early.

Half way through washing the pots and dishes, Castiel heard the water running for a bath. Up until a few months beforehand, everyone who lived in an outlining city or town had water restrictions. The extra rainfall in the earlier spring and few out of season storms had helped to restore the water levels and relax some of the restrictions.

Water wasn't the only thing being controlled. Sometimes, there was a constraint on electricity, and since Castiel moved out of the Capital, there was always some kind of restriction food. A first it was a challenge for Castiel to work around the restrictions on water or other things, but he quickly adapted. Whatever the reasons for the restrictions, the Union was most likely doing its job: watching out for the good of all the people.

Castiel finished quickly and decided to retire to bed early himself. He planned to read over some material on his Academy issued tablet before sleeping, but the moment Castiel's head hit his pillow, he was out cold.

A loud crash startled Castiel awake. He sat up in a panic before he remembered that he'd been in the middle of a dream.

Castiel never dreamed.

But he could remember every detail of it vividly as if he had witnessed the events while awake.

He dreamt of standing next to a man, whose face he couldn't see, as they watched the fiery sun set across a crystal blue lake, then Castiel was in the middle of a grand ball. Women in elegant ball gowns and men in midnight black tuxedos twirled around together as they waltzed across the ballroom floor.

It was just like the stories Anna made up as bedtime stories, but the scene was almost too elaborate to be conjured from a child's imagination.

And even though Castiel knew it was a dream, it made him feel warm and nervous and happy. He could still feel the emotions coursing through his body and his heart fluttering strangely.

Castiel made a promise himself to tell Anna about the dream in the morning.

After a few minutes of sitting in silence, Castiel assumed the noise had come from an animal near the barn and eventually fell back to sleep.

Castiel didn't dream the rest of the night.

...

Castiel woke to a quiet house. He couldn't hear creaking floor boards or the sounds of his sister cooking breakfast. Castiel wasn't the type of person to sleep in, but Anna was always awake before him. She was always waiting for him.

He rubbed his eyes and struggled to tame his dark unruly hair after getting out of his bed. There was no point for Castiel to change out of his sleep wear right away. It was the one day of the week that he wasn't required to attend Academy and he planned to spend the day getting ahead on his work.

On his way to the kitchen, Castiel peeked into Anna's bedroom and saw she wasn't in the room. The bed was neatly made; all the pillows were lined up straight, the corners of the bedspread were tucked in, and the quilt her mother made was folded along the bottom of the bed. The curtains were drawn back letting the warm, morning sunlight into the small room. Castiel noticed one of the windows beside the bed was cracked open, and he entered the room to close it. As Castiel walked over to the opened window, something flashed in the sunlight and caught his attention.

It was his sister's ring, a gift from their mother when Anna was officially considered an adult.

Anna never took the ring off and was often cryptic when Castiel asked about its history. All he knew was that the ring belonged to the oldest daughter in every generation, spanning as far back as the Great War, hundreds of years before Castiel's birth. Anna would have never left it sitting out in the open on her vanity's ledge.

He slipped the ring into the pocket of his nightshirt and headed back to the kitchen to give it to Anna.

Cas found his sister wasn't in the kitchen either. There wasn't even a fresh pot of coffee brewing on the counter, or breakfast waiting for Castiel on the table like there was normally.

Now he knew something wasn't right. Castiel's mind worked quickly for an explanation as to why Anna was missing. All his thoughts focused on something bad.

When he sat down at the kitchen table, his arm brushed across a piece of paper he hadn't noticed before. It was a note left for him. The dread that had been building slowly dissipated when Castiel recognized Anna's familiar handwriting.

_Dear Castiel,_

_If you found this note, it means I didn't come back last_

_night. Please don't worry about me or try to look for me._

_I had to meet with a very important person, but something _

_must have prevented me from returning. And as I said _

_before, don't worry about me, carry on as you normally_

_would, concentrate on your training. I'm doing this for you_

_and everyone else we love. I love you and I'm so proud of _

_all the things you've done and will do._

_ -With love, Anna_

The awful feeling that something terrible had happened crept back into the pit of his stomach. Anna had a tendency to be vague or unclear, but it was never like this. Still, he trusted his sister and hoped she would be home soon. Then they could have a quiet breakfast together like they did every Sunday morning, and everything would be back to normal.

But Castiel's appetite had left him, and chose instead to wander out of the kitchen and into the tiny living room. It was one of the few rooms in the house not regularly used. They rarely had guests over.

Castiel sat in one of the plush chairs, curling his arms around his legs pulled up close to his chest. He stayed still, testing his patience, waiting for the distinct sound of someone approaching the house along the gravel driveway. He was fairly good at keeping calm and waiting. After a while he took a deep breath and felt his throat constrict just a bit tighter in fear of Anna never coming home to him. He wanted to obey his sister's commands, but he couldn't stop his mind from exploring the possible consequences of him not searching.

He thought about turning on the television to help pass the ticking minutes, and then thought better of it. The only thing ever on air was the regional news and weather. Sometimes they showed special live events, like a broadcast given by a representative of the Winchester family under orders from the Union. Castiel never liked to watch any of it.

He didn't know exactly how long he sat waiting until he finally made a decision.

The sun was hanging low in the sky and filled the room with an even richer gold than the morning light. Castiel stood and changed into comfortable clothes to ride his horse: a pair of dark riding pants, a loose cotton shirt, and leather boots. He slipped Anna's ring onto a chain and wore it around his neck. It hung close to his heart.

Castiel didn't bother packing anything in a satchel, he only planned to look for Anna until nightfall. If need be, he would wake up early the next morning to search again. He then wrote a short note to Anna and placed it on her bed in the chance that she arrived home while he was out looking for her.

He hurried to the small barn outside that housed his horse, Grace. The days were growing shorter and night would fall quickly. In the Capital, the lights never stopped shining, causing the sky to glow orange and yellow when it should have been pitch black. Castiel could never see the stars there.

Since Castiel was running out of daylight, he chose ride to town first. If Anna was planning to meet someone, she would have gone to the town's square or brought them to the house. The next closest large city was over a day's travel by horse, and almost triple that by foot. Other than that there was nothing but miles and miles of farms and forest.

Castiel saddled his horse before adding a bridle. He didn't hoist himself up immediately, instead he ran back to the house to make sure it was properly locked up and to grab his forgotten cloak. It was trivial little thing, but it was full of memories. The cloak had been a sixteenth birthday present from his brother Gabriel. Castiel wore the gift at first because Anna hated it, but he quickly grew attached to the stupid thing. In some spots the dark blue, almost black, velvet was thinning from usage, and the embroider silver and gold constellations along the edges threatened to unravel. Castiel hadn't been able to wear it during the warmer seasons, but now the night was beginning to threaten chiller nights

Once Castiel knew he had everything ready, he rode east towards town on the only road that passed through it. When he reached the town limits, Castiel slowed to an easy trot, then tied Grace to an unused post. He stopped by the few produce stalls still open at the market in the center of town. Most of the time, the stalls were owned by the families of local farmers selling whatever they had left, after the Union took its share of the crops and farmers had enough food for their families.

Castiel searched the entire square, but never spotted his sister's familiar form. He didn't even see a wisp of her vibrant red hair.

He found himself stopped in front of a table of unsold apples being cleared off by a young girl and boy; Castiel recognized the boy from the group of first years at the Academy. And when the children noticed him, Castiel asked them if they had seen Anna at any point in the day.

The children replied they hadn't seen her and apologized for not being able to help more. They said they were at their farm in the morning and hadn't come to town till the late afternoon. Castiel then asked if the two of them knew of anyone that might have been around earlier. The children claimed everyone knew had already gone back home. Castiel thanked them and left them to finish packing up their table.

The sun started to edge closer to the horizon casting rays of orange, yellow, and pink across the sky. By this time, the entire town was wrapping up for the night. Shopkeepers locked their doors, turned off their lights, and headed to their apartments above their stores. Children and teenagers began the journey home, eager for dinner but dreading heading for Academy or work the next day. Castiel walked past the closed shops, heading back to his horse when the young girl from the apple stall before ran up beside him. She couldn't have been older than six, and when she jumped to a stop, her long brown hair, neatly braided in two, swung around her shoulders.

"I really am sorry me and Jim couldn't help more." The little girl played with the faded sleeve of her pale green shirt. "Mama wouldn't let us help our sister, Missy, at the market until we'd finished helpin' her with the garden. Then Missy had to go back home to help Mama take care of the babies."

"That's okay..." Castiel waited for the girl to state her name. He found it a little awkward talking to the young child alone; he barely even spent time with his own younger siblings.

She smiled showing a missing front tooth and making the dimples on freckled cheeks visible. "Mary Anne. My name's Mary Anne Thompson."

"Thank you, Mary Anne." Castiel smiled too. "You and your brother helped me enough."

Mary Anne looked down for a moment, her tiny hands moving to a frayed edge of her denim coveralls. "Is Miss Anna your real sister? You don't look like brother and sister."

Castiel nodded. He didn't look like any of his siblings.

"Oh, she's really nice, and really really pretty too. Miss Anna visits our table at the market all the time and she even gave me this ribbon to make bows for my pigtails." Mary Anne pointed out the pink ribbon tied to the ends of her braids. "I'm sad that you can't find her."

Castiel sighed and looked down at the girl. Her head barely reached his hips. "I'm sad too, but I know I will find her. I just have to look harder."

"Well, I know all the stores are closed, but the pub is still open. I'm not supposed to know about it, but I do. I also know it's open all the time, so someone might've seen her this morning." Her brother, Jim, called the girl back over to the table so they could leave.

Mary Anne waved goodbye and walked towards her brother. After a few steps she turned around, ran straight to Castiel, and hugged him. It was quick, a simple squeeze of her arms around his legs, and then she let go.

"You're nice like Miss Anna. And you're pretty like her too, even if you don't really look the same."

The fading sun prevented any straggling people on the street from seeing the blush that crept onto his face.

...

The pub was easy to find. Located on the southern side of the town, away from the market and shops, the low building stood like a poor forgotten outcast in a group of weathered friends. The pub's walls were built from wood that had become splintered and warped with weather and age. A dulled light shined out of dirty windows and barely contrasted against the drab grays and faded browns of the surrounding buildings. Even the sky was drained of color, casting everything in a dark twilight. Castiel's hands tightened on Grace's reigns as they came closer, and with every step the smell of old alcohol and salted fish grew stronger. A young man, about the same age as Castiel, opened the pub's door with a bang, the hinges squeaking in protest. He hauled his stumbling father out behind him. The boy gave Castiel a curt nod and continued pulling his father along.

Castiel tied his horse to the railing, among other bonier horses tired of standing all day, and walked up the few creaky steps to the door. Before Castiel could think of a reason to turn around and go back home, he straighten his back and shoulder in a semblance to courage and marched in.

He had to remind himself that he was doing thing for his sister.

The smell of sweaty, unwashed men mingled into the previous scents making the mixture even more pungent. Some men stood at high tables in twos and threes talking to each other in low grumbles. Others tried to hide themselves in dark corners of booths against the walls. Burnt out light bulbs bathed the space in an orangey glow. Only a few solitary men sitting at the bar looked up as Castiel entered, and after a short stare they all gazed back down at their half-empty pints like the answer to their problems would be found at the bottom of the glass.

Castiel paused a moment unsure what to do. He took a risk and strode over the bar standing across the high wooden counter from a petite woman. As far as Castiel could tell she was the only female in the whole establishment. She would be considered attractive to any male standards with long dark brown hair slightly curled, full lips, and large brown eyes. She wore a tight purple shirt and even tighter denim jeans with a black leather jacket. The woman didn't look like she belonged in the small farming town

There was something about the way she was looking at him that made Castiel's stomach flip uncomfortably.

"Looking for someone?" The woman asked. Her rich voice floated above the low grumbles from the rest of the people in the bar.

Castiel fidgeted with his hands and swallowed, the woman smirked. She leaned forward to crossed her arms along the polished countertop.

"Yes. I'm looking for my sister, she went missing this morning. I was hoping someone here might have seen her." Castiel looked straight at the woman. He tried to control his emotions before they gave away his nervousness.

She raised a thin sculpted eyebrow.

"That's not exactly what I thought you were going to say," she looked mockingly defeated. "but I do think I can help an adorable little guy like you. The name's Meg by the way."

Meg walked around the end of the wooden counter and sauntered up next to Castiel. Now he could see that she was also wearing grey high-heeled boots; it was definitely not people wore in the Countryside area. Men wore overalls and flannel shirts while working, women had aprons and wore linen sundresses when it was warm, and children ran around in hand-stitched clothing or hand-me-downs from older siblings. Leather and high-heels were for people in cities, not farmers and their wives.

Meg gripped the cuff of his shirt and tugged him away from the bar. Up close Castiel could smell her perfume. The strongly floral scent overpowered the dirtiness of the pub, but the sweetness clung to his body and stuffed up his nose. It made him wish for fresh air and the chance to scratch at his skin.

She pointed out a table in the back. "Those two have been in and out of here since I opened this morning. If anyone saw your sister, it would be one of them."

Meg left Castiel with a wink, returning to refill an almost comatose man's previous order.

Castiel thought back over their conversation. He assumed Meg had tried to flirt with him, but there was still something unsettling about her that Castiel didn't like.

The noise increased as Castiel made his way to the back of the building. A few odd looks made their way over to him, but no one said anything. He waded through thick cigarette smoke and narrowly missed a bearded man falling out of his chair from passing out drunk on route to the table Meg had pointed out to him.

Unfortunately, if Castiel saw little Mary Anne again, he would have to thank her. Even though most patrons of the pub drank themselves into a stupor, they always seemed to know every little thing that happened around the farming town. Anna had once mentioned that the men in the pub gossiped more than a knitting circle filled with elderly women.

The lights in the pub were dimmed to the point that Castiel couldn't see the men's faces until he stood directly in front of their table. One of the men didn't look like he belonged in such a seedy place. He looked about the same age as his oldest brother, his dark hair neatly trimmed, and his newer looking clothes freshly washed. The only thing not tidy on the man was a light spray of black stubble across his jaw. There was twinge of familiarity in the man's face. When he saw Castiel, he grinned in an uncannily similar way to Meg. On the strange man, the smile was even more unsettling.

The man opposite him was the picture of an old drunk, he could have been anywhere between the age of forty and a hundred. He had patched-up pants and a dirt stained shirt, small beady eyes, wrinkles as deep as old scars which covered the entirety of his face his face, and stringy grey hair pulled back into a low ponytail. Yellow crooked teeth lay behind a squinted sneer.

The younger man spoke first.

"Can I help you?" His voice was smooth and drawn out.

The older one huffed. "More like 'what do you want.'" He had a short coughing fit before continuing. "Well…go on."

Castiel drew his shoulders back a bit more. His father drilled into his head that it was improper to slouch, even in an informal environment. It help in pretending to be brave too.

"I was told you men might be able to help me locate my sister, Anna." He tried ignore their uncomfortable gazes and kept his voice even.

"That depends," muttered the older man. Panic flooded through Castiel's veins, and he tensed up. He never expected them to want anything in return for a small piece of information. He didn't have any money and nothing to trade. "Is this the same Anna with that long red hair and's always wandering around the town?"

Castiel forced his body to relax relaxed.

The younger man spoke up. "Oh, you mean her? I never knew she had a brother. A bit of a prude, that Anna."

Anger replaced Castiel's previous worry.

"All the times I complimented her, and she just brushed me off." The man had the nerve to look offended. "Seems she's too stupid to see the potential. Such a shame, she's quite beautiful."

All logical thoughts left Castiel's head before he surged forward. Castiel gripped the man by his starched collar and heaved him out of his seat. When the man stood his full height, he was almost a half head shorter that Castiel.

Castiel wasn't exactly short nor was he scrawny even for his age. He thanked the years of physical training at Academy for that. Those years had also taught Castiel how to take down a man in one move, and Castiel wasn't afraid to give a demonstration.

"If you say one more thing about my sister, your face will be so bloody and bruised no one will be able to look at you, or even recognize you." Castiel fumed.

He hated when he saw scumbags like the man in front of him terrorize young women. It made Castiel irate to know it happened to his sister.

The man laughed. "Don't worry. She won't be rejecting me for long. Eventually everyone gets a little piece of me."

"He's not worth your energy." he said. The elderly man stopped Castiel before he could do something to harm the dark haired man. Castiel looked away from the man still caught in his tight grasp. The old man was right. The guy in front of him didn't even deserve Castiel's attention. "I know where your sister went."

Castiel looked to the younger man, and with a last surge of anger Castiel shoved him against the solid wall. A crack rung out as the man's skull hit the hard surface. When Castiel let go, the now unconscious man slid down the wall until he laying partially on the floor.

A few other patrons in the pub saw what Castiel did, but no one called him out. Castiel did see Meg smirking from behind her place at the bar. Fights weren't uncommon in the area.

The older man wasn't fazed by Castiel's outburst either. He seemed rather relieved and merely took a drink from his glass after Castiel sat down opposite of him.

"About time someone knocked him down a few pegs." The man coughed again.

Castiel could only smile, which was nothing more than a quick upturn of his lips, in return from the shame and embarrassment that came from the aftermath of him lashing out. Perverts like the black haired man always tainted the goodness in the population around them. Someone had to punish them.

"You know where my sister is?" asked Castiel.

The old man cleared his throat. "Yes, she walked in a little while after I did and-"

"Wait, Anna was at this pub?"

He glared at Castiel.

"Look kid. Like I was sayin' before, your sister walked in after me and sat right over there." He pointed to booth in the darkest corner a few tables away. "She was talkin' to a guy, but I couldn't see his face. She was actin' she knew him. I couldn't hear what they were sayin' either."

Castiel had no idea why Anna would ever enter a place like this just to talk to someone.

"They talked for a good long while too. Got pretty into whatever they were discussing. After a while, some Union people came in with a few Guards and Anna and whoever she was with tried to escape out the back. The Guards caught her, but the man got away."

Castiel's heart fell. Whatever Anna found herself in the middle of, got her captured by an Officer. Nothing good ever happened to those who were taken away.

"Where were the Guards from?" Castiel said quietly.

The man smiled sadly. "From what I could tell, the Winchester Manor."

Now he felt like he was going to be sick. Not only was Anna caught by a Union Officer, but also private Guardsmen to the governing family. The only thing more powerful than the Winchesters was the Union itself. This was not good, really not good.

"Tell me where they took her," demanded Castiel. Time was now running out for his sister

A stern look crossed the man's face. "Don't you get mad at me now. I'm the one trying to help."

Castiel settled in the seat that the unconscious man had occupied. The old man continued.

"A few minutes after the Officer and Guards left, a friend of mine stopped by to pay me a visit. He mentioned seeing a Union car heading up north on the main road. So my best guess? They took her back to the Manor."

Castiel was up before the man could say anything else. He ran out the door and unhitched his horse without looking back.

The sky was now entirely dark; the sun had completely set while he had been inside that dreadful place. Castiel was glad to finally be out of there. The stars high above Castiel's head shined brightly against the night sky like the embroidery on his cloak. Castiel saddled his horse and spurred Grace into action leaving the pub in dust.

He only stopped one time when he was beyond the town's limits. Turning right would take him to the Winchester Manor and left would eventually bring him back to his bed. Castiel merely paused for a second. He headed north to unknown territory and to unknown dangers. He wasn't quite ready to give up Anna just yet.

...

No one in town had ever been to or seen the Winchester Manor in years, not since the family moved to the Manor permanently. Grand parties had once been held during the summer months when the Winchesters visited. Now no one was ever invited to the Manor.

And the last time anyone saw a member of the Winchester household was at the funeral for Mary Winchester, beloved wife of the Commander. Since then advisers and other high ranking officials close to the Winchesters handled all public affairs and gave orders on their behalf.

Mary Winchester's untimely death left behind a grief-stricken husband, two young motherless sons, and a sorrow filled nation. Castiel could still remember the day the news about the Commander's wife reached him. He had only been thirteen at the time and deeply engrossed in his studies at the Academy.

If there was one specific thing people of the little farming community liked to gossip about the most, it was the Winchesters. The amount of rumors about the ruling family ebbed and flowed like the water in a lake, but there was always someone spreading a new story.

Castiel was always told that Mary was most the beautiful and amiable woman in all of the nations under the Union, and that she often balanced out her husband's rougher qualities. He knew she was greatly loved among all the citizens, but it didn't compare to the love her sons had for her.

Before Mary's passing stories that sifted through the cities about the Winchesters were positive and kind. Now years later, nothing good was ever said about the family. Their once great leader became an unfriendly recluse and had locked his two sons up with him.

Cool night air whipped around Castiel as he galloped down the hard dirt road. If it was any colder, he would've seen his breath fog up in the air. When the road hit the forest, he pulled Grace's reigns to slow her to a stop.

"Whoa there, girl."

She neighed and shook her mane out. Her muscles were tight and her breathing was slightly labored. Grace wasn't use to going such long distances at one time. Castiel patted her strong shoulders and urged her to slowly walk forwards.

Interlocking branches hanging overhead form a netted canopy that prevented any light given off by the stars and moon from reaching the ground. The air surrounding Castiel was filled with the sounds of insects and nocturnal birds. If Castiel wasn't so worried about his sister, he would've found the forest relaxing.

After a few miles he spotted a break in the trees that lined the sides of the dirt road. Castiel expected a black paved private driveway, or even a continuation of more dirt like the road he was currently on, but the path was cleared out just wide enough for a compact Union car to use, and without the obvious tire tracks in the dirt, it could have passed as a well used deer trail.

Castiel felt like he was being watched as he waited at the mouth of the road. A quick glance around revealed nothing but trees. He thought he heard the humming of an engine off in the distance, but Castiel let himself believe it was an insect.

The trail seemed to extend infinitely. It twisted and turned, treading between trees, and at one point the path followed alongside a deep creek. Even with unknown dangers ahead and surrounded by near darkness, Castiel could imagine the beauty. He could imagine a warm summer afternoon when the sun was high in the cloudy blue sky, the trees were bursting full of bright green leaves and life. But it wasn't summer, it was cold, and all the leaves were dead.

When the trail finally straightened out, the forest wasn't as dense as it had been before. In front of Castiel rosea small incline preventing him from seeing any further down the path. Every step upward on the road became looser and rockier. Castiel swung his leg over the back of his horse and dropped to the ground. He figured it wouldn't hurt to give Grace a break since they couldn't have been very far away from the Manor.

Castiel was amazed by what he saw when he reached the top of the hill. In a valley sat a vast lake surrounded by additional wooded areas; the water of the lake was a sea of diamonds in the moonlight. More hills ringed around the top of basin enclosing the region like a crater. The whole valley had to be at least a mile across, if not two. But most impressive thing he saw, though, was the enormous Winchester Manor sitting in the center of the water.

And Castiel had to admit the whole layout was well thought out. It was easy to defend from revolters as well as reporters. The path Castiel was currently on was the sole road, in or out, and where it hit the edge of the lake, it was heavily protected by two Guard posts and a huge iron gate. Beyond the gate, the road stretched on for what looked like a half mile before meeting another Guard station. The road looped around the Manor and ended at what looked to be a huge garden and open lawn area which backed up against the forest.

Even from the distance, Castiel could see some of the larger details. Trimmed evergreen trees lined the stony bridge-like road leading to the Manor and the geometrical shaped island. Curls and coils weaved together to form the gate at the bottom of the hill. The Manor and the grassy lawns surrounding it looked like they were all symmetrical. The Winchester Manor was striking simply bathed in moonlight. Castiel wondered what it looked like up close and in the day.

He ran down the sloped drive into the valley while pulling Grace along behind him. At the bottom, the trees grew thick again and stopped at the rocky waterline of the lake. Castiel dropped the reins and dashed to the closed gate when he reached the shore. Through the wall of iron, Castiel could see the Manor more looked more like a story book castle than a rich family's summer house.

Castiel thought it looked lonely. The unlit windows and dulled colors made it appear uninhabited. Castiel knew Anna was somewhere inside the Manor. But he needed to get past the gate first.

In frustration, Castiel shook the imposing metal bars. The gate didn't even rattle.

"Let me in! I need to see Anna." He yelled out, hoping someone from the Manor would hear him.

He was about to try again when someone stepped out of the shadows along the side of the Guards' station.

"Sir, I going to need you to step away from the gate," commanded the man. He had a strong jaw, closely trimmed hair, and bulging muscles under stone-grey fatigues with the Winchester crest patched onto the sleeve. When Guard spoke, he sounded like he grew up in the South, a place very far away from where they were currently.

"No." Castiel turned around from the Guard and attempted to shake the gate again. "I'm not moving until someone let's me in to see my sister."

Something flashed across the Guard's face but it disappeared in the same second.

"Please. I don't want this situation to get messy. Just follow me, then we can have ourselves a little talk."

Castiel slowly shook his head. The Guard audibly huffed and Castiel could tell he was getting irritated, but he turned his attention away from Castiel at the thud of approaching footsteps.

Two Union Officers with matching black suits and menacing smiles strolled out of the second Guard post, which was closer to the bank of the lake than the iron gate. Both Union officers dwarfed in physical size compared to the Manor Guard.

The shorter of the two Officers spoke first. "Yeah, he's the one."

"Stand down, Gaurd. We have it from here," said the other officer. He walked over and rested a hand on the Guard's shoulder. "Good job keeping him still. Looks you can follow orders after all."

The comment wasn't a compliment.

The shorter Officer sauntered over to Castiel and called over his shoulder to his partner, "What did the boss say to do with him?"

"Chain him up and throw him in the basement." Both Officers were now standing beside the Guard preventing Castiel from trying to get back to Grace. "Boss said he would've been here sooner if not for the little obstacle that delayed him."

Castiel didn't have time to figure out what they were talking about. All he cared about was finding his sister.

"It's settled. Grab him."

The Officers surged forward pinning Castiel against the gate. They tried to take hold of his arms, but Castiel kicked out and threw his one of his elbows up effectively hitting an Officer in the face.

The taller of the two Guards stumbled back clutching his nose; his blood was black as black as ink in the darkness.

Castiel continued to struggle desperately to get away. He might never see Anna again if he got thrown in prison. Every time he pulled away the Officer holding him gripped his arms tighter.

"Well don't just stand there like an idiot. Subdue him. Knock him out or something." The Officer with the bleeding nose barked at the Guard.

The last thing Castiel saw before a fist connected with his head was one of the Officers dodging out of the way when Grace kicked out as he reached for he reigns.

He thought he saw a slightly apologetic look on the Guard's face, but he blacked-out completely.

A thundering bang brought Castiel back to consciousness. He was being hauled a corridor with a floor tiled with marble and a thick, running carpet to dampen their steps. Light from dimly lite sconces attached to plastered walls reflected off the polished floor. Two men in grey Guard uniforms held him up as he was carried down the hall. One of them was the Guard from the gate, and on the opposite side was a younger man who had long hair pulled back into a small ponytail.

They whispered back and forth, as to not attract the attention of the Union officers marching ahead of them.

"And why did you have to punch him again?" asked the younger Guard.

"Just thought it'd be easier."

"Yeah, it's easier when you don't have to carry the kid."

Castiel slide back to unconsciousness when a sharp pain flared up on the side of his face and radiated down his spine. He struggled to keep his eyes open, but even in the low light Castiel felt like he had been staring into the sun for too long.

The second time Castiel woke up, he didn't open his eyes right away. He felt his head being cradled in a soft lap and warm hands stroking his hair. But when he finally did open his eyes, Castiel thought he was dreaming.

"Anna?" His voice was weak.

Anna smiled from her place above him. "Castiel, my stupid, thick-headed, wonderful, little brother, I thought I told you not to look for me?"

A sliver of moonlight streamed in from the window behind his sister's head. It made her look like an angel.

"Did you really expect me not to try to look for you?" Castiel fought through a wave of nausea when he tried to sit up. His head felt sluggish and his mouth was stuffed with cotton.

"Of course I did" As Anna leaned back against a rough stone wall, her smile faltered. "But this time I hoped you'd listen. Everything is going to be fine. Trust me."

Now Castiel was getting angry at Anna, he had just found her and she was treating Castiel like a child. She always said everything would turn out okay and not to worry. How was everything supposed to turn out fine when they were locked in the basement one of the most heavily Guarded buildings in the entire world?

"Trust? How am I supposed to trust you when the outcome doesn't look so favorable right now?" He tried to keep himself from yelling.

"Faith, Castiel. Just have a little faith."

"Faith in wh-"

Castiel was interrupted when the doors of the basement opened. The siblings heard the click of shoes on stone echoing off the walls and held their tongues. When the footsteps hit the bottom of the staircase, they continued at a leisurely pace finally stopping in front of their cell.

"It looks like we meet again. Castiel, was it?"

Instead of angry, Castiel was confused. The disembodied voice belonged to no one that Castiel knew. And whoever owned that voice wasn't from any place close. It sounded similar to the accent of one of his father's oldest friends who lived across the Atlantic Ocean in the Union nation governed by the Britians.

When the man stepped out from the shadows, Castiel thought he was hallucinating from his head injury. It was the man from the pub that Castiel left a dazed mess on the floor.

"You can call me Crowley."

"But…I"

"Wasn't who you were expecting? I'm flattered by the way. And I understand your confusion. I couldn't do a little undercover work with the chance I might be recognized by some pathetic farmer. I think it's the accent." Castiel figured out why Crowley seemed familiar. He was a high ranking Union official who specialized in containment and dispersion of revolts and protests.

It didn't explain why he was here talking to Anna and him.

Anna stood up. "Undercover work? Is that why you've been following me this past week?"

"Part of the reason, I had to make sure you were the person I was looking for. Then I stuck around for a bit at that appalling excuse for a pub waiting to see if your accomplice came back to look for you. It was my lucky day when your darling little brother walked right up to me. It helped that the owner of the place was in need of some money, though I didn't plan on Castiel getting so offended. I would have been here sooner to question you two, but I had needed a wardrobe change." Crowley gestured to his new clothes. His expensive and trimly cut black suit blended into the darkness around him. The Union insignia pinned to his blood red tie gleamed as it caught a ray of light. "And I wasn't lying when I said Anna was beautiful."

Anna had to help Castiel stand. He was too weak to do anything else.

"Unfortunately, you and your brother will be spending the rest of your pathetic lives in prison for crimes against the Union."

The basement doors opened again preventing Castiel from questioning both Anna and Crowley.

Footsteps, lighter and quicker than before bounded down the steps. A blonde haired girl, no younger than Castiel, stood next to Crowley. She wore the grey uniform of the Manor's Guard.

She held a set of large metal keys in her hand. "The Commander wishes to speak to you, Crowley, and the prisoners."

The female Guard had the same apologetic look as the male Guard from the gate. She brushed past Crowley on the way to unlock their prison. Anna braced Castiel up as they left the chilly cell. Castiel's headache had faded some, but walking still made him dizzy.

The two women gave each other undecipherable looks as they crossed paths.

"If you would follow me, please. I'll take you to the study." The Guard turned, made her way through the shadows, and up to the main level of the Manor

Crowley brought up the rear as the small group wound through the Manor. Castiel saw he was right about the place looking sad. Everything was richly furnished and there wasn't a speck of dust or dirt on anything, but it didn't look lived in. There were no marks on the painted walls or scratches on the wooden furniture. Walking through the halls, Castiel felt he was in an old museum rather than someone's home.

The group, with the female Guard still leading, turned at the end of one of the two long wings and walked up a few short flights of rickety steps to the fifth story of the Manor. The blonde haired Guard ushered Crowley and the two siblings down a shorter hallway and into a large circular room. Castiel guessed they were at the top of one of the four towers located at the corners of the Manor.

The only source of light in the room came from a wide window that stretched from the wooden floor to the ceiling. A man's dark outline stood out against the brightness of the moonlight.

Castiel didn't need anyone to tell him that it was Commander John Winchester, the leader of the Western Federation.

His wide shoulders were set firmly and he held his hands behind his back as he faced the window. Thick drapes covered the rest of the windows that lined the walls of the room. The female Guard slipped in line with other grey-clad Guards who stood against the covered windows. The only thing Castiel could make out in the almost darkness was a bulky desk and a high-backed chair behind it. He also saw an older man sitting on one of many plush couches that formed a semicircle in the middle of the room.

"Crowley" The Commander's voice was gravelly and tired sounding.

It must have been well into the night.

Crowley stood a little straighter then took a step forward. "Sir," he didn't sound as nearly as respectful as he should have.

"Thank you for coming, but your services are no longer needed. I suggest you collect your team and leave in the first thing in the morning."

"I think I'll decline that suggestion. I was given orders to-"

"You are not at a Union base at the moment, you are at my home. That means you will follow my orders." The Commander kept his voice even but the intent was clear. "You've done what you came here to do, and I'll personally handle the rest. You're dismissed."

Crowley didn't try to object again. He turned to exit the study.

But before he completely walked through the doorway, Crowley faced the rest of the room and stated, "You know, you can't try to save them all. You're no better than the rest of us"

The Commander didn't move a muscle until a few moments after Crowley had left the room. He tilted his head slightly to address the rest of the room.

"Anna, do you understand what has to happen now?" The man sounded now different, less authoritative and commanding, but still exhausted.

Castiel's sister nodded. "Yes, just promise nothing will happen to my brother."

"I promise he'll be safe."

None of what they were saying was making sense.

"Ash, take two other men besides Benny and Jo and please escort the young man back to his house, but be as discreet as you can. And Jo, take Miss Anna to the room she'll be staying in."

Castiel was sure that Anna had done nothing wrong and wasn't going to let her be falsely accused.

He stumbled a few steps towards the Commander. "No, wait! You can't take her."

The Guard closest to Castiel stepped to him, but Commander Winchester held his hand up.

"My sister has done no wrong, so if you are going to keep someone as your prisoner, take me instead."

Anna grabbed his arm. "No, Castiel. You don't know what you're doing."

"Yes. I do know what I'm doing, Anna. I'm not a child."

The old man on the couch slowly stood up and held a whispered conversation with the Commander at the window. Eventually, the older man sat back down.

Commander Winchester spoke again, "Very well, Castiel. You will be trading your sister's place as my prisoner. Ash, will you now take Anna home."

A Guard next to the door stepped forward and motioned to the two other Guards immediately to his left and right to join him. Anna quickly grabbed onto Castiel before the Guards could touch her.

"You can't do this. Castiel, please. Let them take me." Castiel had never seen his sister look so desperate before.

He hung his head, not able to look anyone in the eyes. "It's your time to have a some faith in me."

The three Guards gently pulled a near hysteric Anna from the room. Castiel stumbled to the closest seat and fell into it, cradling his head in his hands. He didn't see the older man slowly shaking his head, or the remorseful look on the Commander's face. After a few long minutes, someone tapped him on the shoulder. It was the women from the basement, she must have been Jo. Castiel got up and follow her without a single protest.

He made a choice, and he had to stick with it.

Castiel didn't even remember the walk to his newly assigned bedroom. In one heartbeat he was in the study, staring at the back of the man who forbade him from leaving the property of the Winchester Manor and by the next beat, Castiel was alone in a bedroom much larger than the one back at his old house.

He kicked off his shoes then slid under the warm sheets of an unfamiliar bed still fully clothed. In another thump of his aching heart, Castiel was fast asleep.


	2. The Manor

His body awoke before his mind, and although he dreamt of a vast nothingness, the feeling of sleep was comforting. Castiel turned over and tried to burrow further into the silk sheets. For a moment he could pretend that he was back in his own bed, in his own house, and that nothing had happened last night. Any second Anna would wake him up for breakfast and shoo him away to Academy. But he knew where he really was, far away from his sister, locked away like a prisoner.

A beam of golden light landed directly over Castiel eyes. He saw no use in trying to fall back asleep now that his drowsiness had completely left.

He sat up from his tangled mess of bed sheets and pillows, taking a better look his surroundings.

The room was simple. Warm olive green painted the walls and accents of gold and a darker shade of green complemented it. A worn trunk fit snugly against the foot of the heavy wooden bed frame. Iron swirls rose headboard behind his head. It reminded Castiel of the gates keeping him from his sister. A tall dresser stood between two nondescript doors on the opposite wall of the bed, a third door sat adjacent to the door furthest to the left. There was a small writing desk centered along a window that covered the majority of the right-hand wall; a glass door blended in with the window and lead to a balcony outside. The door and windows were all locked. A huge painting mirrored the window on the left-hand side. It depicted an old battle, but Castiel couldn't recall its name.

All the furniture looked liked it was carved from the same dark mahogany wood. Everything was slightly worn with age, giving it a sense of comfort. Castiel thought someone must have live in this room a long time ago.

The only modern technology in the room was lamp and an old phone on top of one of the nightstands that flanked the bed.

An exploration of the rest the room was quick. Behind one door was a deep walk in closet, and the other hid a bathroom. The window overlooked the north side of the lake. Castiel could see a wide stone walkway lead to beautiful gardens and distant forests.

Someone had left a neatly folded stack of clothes and a towel on top of the wooden trunk. When Castiel picked up the pile, a slip of paper fluttered to the floor.

_Feel free to clean yourself up and change clothes. When you're ready __dial #221. Someone will escort you to the kitchens for breakfast. If the __clothes don't fit, look in the closet, anything in there is yours. I had to guess __on the size._

On the back there was another sentence. As if the person who wrote the note scribbled it down as an afterthought.

_You're not supposed to feel like a prisoner_

Castiel put the note on the desk and tried to keep it out of his mind.

His shower was quick. It felt good to try to scrub away everything that happened in the past day. But when the smooth tiles of the shower stall seemed to compress and close in around him, Castiel stepped out from under the hot spray of water.

He stood in front of the mirror, his reflection distorted by the fogged surface. He forced himself to breathe, slow and controlled, until the tightness in his chest lessened and his staggered breathing returned to normal. Eventually the world stopped caving in too.

When the fog started to retreat from the glass, Castiel caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror. A dark bruise had bloomed across part of his temple and was tender to the touch. Anna's ring still on the chain around his neck glimmered in the overhead light.

Castiel rifled through clothes that had been laid out for him. The pants were casual, not made for riding or hard labor; they fit well enough in most places but hung a bit too loosely from his hips. The button-up shirt was more form fitting than the one he wore the day before. It was obvious the clothes were tailored for somebody else. Someone not much taller than himself, but someone who had wider hips and broader shoulders. He supposed it would have to do and reminded himself to look for a belt.

The number Castiel was told to call connected to the Manor's Guard station. Before Castiel could utter a greeting, a brusque voice told him someone would be sent to escort him to the kitchen.

Castiel realized that his cloak was missing while he was waiting, and that there was no way of knowing where it had fallen off at. In defeat, Castiel put his older sister's ring in the top drawer of the dresser for safe keeping.

He wished he would have given it back to be before she had been taken away.

After a few minutes the young female Guard from the night before, Jo, opened the door and gestured to for him to step into the hallway.

Castiel didn't try to hide his resentment towards the Guard. Inspite of what the note said, he felt as trapped as a prisoner within the stone walls of the Manor.

"If you were wondering, I volunteered to do this," she said when Castiel didn't move from the doorway. "None of the other Guards would have bothered with you."

Castiel didn't understand was she was trying to accomplish by pretending to be nice to him.

"Besides, you wouldn't want your food to get cold."

Castiel couldn't do anything to stop the pain of losing Anna as he followed stiffly behind Jo. The Guard wound through a maze of hallways and staircases rattling off weak attempts to get Castiel to talk.

As they walked, Castiel noticed a few things about the girl that had changed since she had taken him to his room the night before. Instead of a tightly knotted bun, her pale blonde curls fell loosely against her back. There were scuffs on her boots and wrinkles in her uniform. Jo was no longer looked like a trained soldier leading a prisoner from his cell, but rather a girl a little younger than Castiel casually walking down the hallway guiding a guest to breakfast.

The Guard stopped in front of a heavy wooden door adorned with a simple golden plate engraved with _KITCHENS_, before turning around to look Castiel in the eye as she spoke.

"Bobby's waiting to explain some things to you. Hopefully it will help to clarify anything that you were confused about." Her voice then dropped quieter as if she was telling him a secret. "It's not my place to say anything, but I think after a while, you'll fit in with rest of us. Dean just takes awhile to get use to. I promise."

When Jo opened the door, it was dampening more sound than Castiel had realized. An older woman sternly rebuked a hand full of cooks as the scrambled back and forth trying to please her. Two male Guards sat a small table gossiping with two maids, the subject of their whisperings sending them all into a fit of laughter.

Another two men in more ordinary clothes sat at another table a few feet away from the first one. One was more of boy than a man, and the other looked like he was a few years older than his father. They were in the middle of their own deep conversation.

All talking and other noises stopped as the people in the kitchen became aware of Castiel standing in the doorway. The woman cleared her throat, and the maids scurried out another door which allowed Jo to take a seat with the male Guards. The woman also dismissed the cooks and started distributing platefuls of food. Three to the first table and three to the second.

"Are you just going to stand there all morning or eat?" asked the woman when Castiel still hadn't moved from his spot right inside the kitchen door. She motioned for Castiel to sit at the empty place setting.

Castiel found himself tensing up at every loud scrap of metal against metal or scuffle of a chair against the work floor. The last time he had had a meal with this many people, it was the last night he stayed with his father. The oldest of Castiel's brothers came to the dinner at the Capital, and the night ended disastrously because of multiple strong personalities clashing. After Castiel managed to swallow a few bites of his breakfast, the man in front of him cleared his throat a couple of times and then addressed everyone eating in the kitchen.

"I think some introductions are in order." Beside the older man, the boy's bright smile was battling Castiel's grim one. "Because there's no need for formalities from you, you can call me Bobby. And this is Sam the-"

"The youngest son of Commander Winchester. I know," interrupted Castiel. In the past few years that he had lived with Anna, she had told him many stories about the Winchester brothers.

Bobby nodded and said, "Next is Ellen Harvelle." He pointed out the older woman who had been ordering around the cooks. "She pretty much keeps the Manor in working condition."

Ellen gave Bobby a mocking smile. "You're damn right I do."

"Then we have our head Guardsmen," continued the old man.

The three Guards quickly scrambled to stand up alongside each other; the two men flanked Jo in the center.

Sam shot up too and took over speaking from Bobby. "They don't look like much, but they're some of the finest men we've had in a long time. Ash is the shorter one on the left. He's head of security and communications, and you've already met Jo. She was assigned to my personal protection until she graciously offered to be your escort. And lastly there's Benny. He's assigned to watch Dean."

Castiel couldn't stand to look at the Guards now that he had names for their faces. Benny was the Guard who had knocked Castiel unconscious outside the Gate. Ash had helped drag him to the Manor.

Bobby pulled Sam back into his seat and spoke again. "I've arranged for you to continue your studies with Sam while you stayed here. Sam's quite advanced for his age, but I can take out things you already know."

"But about my Officer's Exam?" The test to become a Union Officer was the one thing set up by his father that Castiel was actually looking forward to.

"What about it?" Bobby did not look impressed.

"I'm supposed to take the test in December. It's been planned for months."

"Aren't you a little young to be an Officer?" asked Sam.

When Castiel stole a glance around the room, he could see everyone staring back at him. "My father starting training me to become an Officer at a very young age, and because of that I was able to shorten my time on each level of Academy. If I pass the exam by the end of the year, I'd been the youngest person to become an Officer since the formation of the Union. I will have beaten the record previously set by my eldest brother by a year."

Bobby spoke from across the small table. "You really do sound like one of General Novak's sons."

Castiel mentally closed himself off again. His mood had started to get better, until he was compared to his brothers.

Sam's impressed expression contrasted with everyone elses in the room. The younger boy opened his mouth to bombard Castiel with questions about his training when a fit of coughing overcame him. He grew pale and struggled to take a breath before another cough hit.

The three Guards were at Sam's side immediately. Ellen hurried to cupboard and handed the box she found to Ash as he and Benny whisked Sam from the kitchen.

"I'm going to find Jody," Ellen said as she followed the boys out of the door.

In a matter of seconds, Castiel was left standing in the kitchen with Bobby and Jo. He was glad the rest of breakfast was called off after Sam's coughing had faded down the hallway. Castiel wasn't hungry anymore.

Bobby promised to drop a few books by his room later in the day and let Jo usher Castiel back to his room.

She informed Castiel of rules he was supposed to follow when he was in the Manor unescorted, including places he could visit whenever he like, and areas that were strictly off limits. Castiel tried to listen at first but was distracted by the growing knot that had formed in the pit of his stomach. All of Jo's speech turned to undecipherable noises in the back of his mind.

"So do you understand the rules, at least for right now? They'll change once everything gets settled."

Castiel nodded his head not wanting to completely lie to her.

Jo told him she'd he back in an hour or so and then left the room in a hurry.

...

The world outside the window should have been beautiful. The surrounding forest was reluctant to give up its leaves for the fall, gold and green blended seamlessly together, and the ground was still warm enough for the multicolored summer flowers in the garden to continue to bloom next to the warmer toned autumn perennials. A bright, cloudless sky stretched beyond the horizon of the trees.

But Castiel didn't feel any of it. He felt empty without his sister hovering over him. He felt like an idiot for jumping head first into something when Anna said to trust her.

Castiel could see someone letting the horses out of the stables and into a fenced in pen. He wanted nothing more than to collect Grace and leave the Winchester Manor. Instead he remained at the writing desk staring out the window until he heard a knock on the door.

When Castiel didn't answer immediately, Jo opened the door. "Where would you like to go?"

Castiel turned to face her. The Guard looked restless.

His first thought was of going back to Anna's house, until he realized she meant inside the Manor. He racked his brain for a place that Jo had mentioned on the way back to the room.

"You mentioned a library earlier? I haven't been to one since I was a young child."

Jo instantly brightened. "Yes, of course. I think you'll love it there. We have quite an impressive collection."

Castiel obediently followed the Guard down the hallway and stopped when an older maid with deep wrinkles and greying hair stepped out of a room and started to question Jo about Sam's current condition.

"Do you remember how to get to the kitchen?" Jo asked Castiel when she noticed him growing uncomfortable. He nodded. "Okay. Go the same way, but instead of going all the way to the bottom of the staircase, stop at landing above it. Turn left down the hallway, then turn right, and the entrance to the library is the door on the left. You got all that?" Castiel nodded again. "Okay, I'll see you there in a minute."

Jo pulled the maid into an alcove off the hallway to have more privacy, and Castiel attempted to follow her along the way he must have made a mistake.

The corridor he ended up finding was windowless and dark; the only source of light was coming from a set of double doors at the far end. After taking a few tentative steps forward, Castiel determined that there were no other door along the hallway, and instead found both walls lined with a row of huge portraits. And after a few more steps, Castiel could see that the paintings were of past Commanders and the Winchester family.

He didn't any of the faces until he found himself standing at the opposite end of the dark hallway. Light shining from underneath the door made the the details of the paintings easier to see.

The first portrait Castiel could clearly see depicted Henry Winchester, a proud man with dark hair and a stern face, standing next to his wife and young son, John.

The painting across from it was hidden behind a white sheet. A thick cloud of dust filled the air when Castiel removed it. In the painting, John was now a man standing proudly beside his wife Mary. The metal plate underneath the portrait declared it was made shortly after their wedding. It was easy to see how young they were, radiating with love and happiness.

Finally, Castiel faced the last painting. It showed a similar arrangement to the one of Henry and his family. John was a hand full of years older and still standing next to his wife, who now held an infant Sam protectively in her arms. In front of Mary stood their other son, Dean, who looked as if he was trying to imitate his father. He couldn't have been more than five years old. All details in the family's portrait was extraordinary, from the gold filament details on Mary's dress to intense green of Dean's wide eyes.

Castiel found it a shame that the painting had been ruined. The canvas was in two by a slash running down from Mary's left shoulder down to Dean's right shoulder. He had to place hand on one of the edges to keep it from falling down.

Castiel was deep in his thoughts about the happy and smiling family when the closed doors burst open flooding Castiel and the rest of the paintings in a blinding light. He managed to drop his hands from the wall, but his feet were glued to the ground.

Castiel was now face-to-face with those vivid green eyes in the flesh, though now all traces of Dean's past innocence was gone.

Now his eyes were filled with rage.

"What the hell do you think you're doing here?" roared Dean. "This entire part of the Manor is forbidden."

No coherent words came out of Castiel's mouth. First he was caught off guard and startled, then anger also flooded his system. Dean had no right to yell at Castiel. It pushed him over the edge, and Castiel was desperate to get it all out.

So he ran.

Castiel somehow got to the gardens and ran to the stables behind the Manor. He found his riding stuff, and with a numb mind and numb fingers he saddled Grace and left the Manor behind him.

He made it to the top of the hill outside the gate before he heard people shouting. Castiel spurred his horse faster and shot down the path that would lead back to the main road.

Then for the second time that day, Castiel found himself lost. The flurry of emotions inside of Castiel had taken control of his body, and when he was finally able to stop and take a deep breath, he knew he had accidentally strayed from the right path.

Castiel breathed in deeply a few more times to clear his head, dismounted Grace, and looked around at his surroundings. He and his horse stood in a small clearing only a few yards wide in each direction. Despite being mid-day, the dense canopy over Castiel's head let in only few beams of sunlight.

Castiel was reminded of all the times Anna dragged him and Gabriel out for picnics in the woods near their house. Gabriel would load his pocket with sweets and eat so many that he couldn't move for hours afterwards.

It took a minute for Castiel to realize something was off. Everything in the clearing was silent: no insects, no birds, no animals. Besides crunch of dried grass beneath his boots and the occasional huff from Grace, the rest of the world had been muted. It made Castiel uncomfortable and set him on edge.

He needed to get back to the main road. Needed to get back to Anna.

He planned rest for a few more minutes, but the break was interrupted by the echos of a branch snapping followed by low growls.

As Castiel scrambled to lift himself up and over the saddle, something huge and fast lunged out of shadows towards him. It managed to sink its jaws into one of Castiel's shoulders and rake its dagger like claws across his back. The force knocked Castiel to the ground and made him land awkwardly on his hand. A shooting pain in his wrist soon joined the feeling of a fire burning it way across his shoulder and down his back.

Grace became spooked at the sudden motion, and vicious snarling the continued to fill the small clearing. The horse reared back and narrowly missed Castiel where he was thrown onto the forest floor. Once her front hooves touched the ground again, Grace took off back through the dense trees.

Castiel yelled for his horse to come back, but she never did. Now Castiel was alone and completely defenseless against the animal that attacked him.

A monster of an animal loomed only a few feet in front of Castiel, set and ready to attack at the slightest movement. It looked like a wolf the size of a fully grown bear and had thick rippling muscles and huge paws with wickedly sharp claws. Its eyes looked as if they were glowing in the dim light.

The world seemed to spin when Castiel grew light headed. He started to feel cold even though it was the hottest part of the day. Time began to slow as Castiel closed his eyes and carefully curled inward towards his chest and injured arm.

Castiel thought he heard the sounds of a horse galloping to the clearing and man shouting his name. A thundering _bang_ and a crashing _thump_ soon followed.

He knew he was about to die.

Castiel came to with someone gently shaking his good shoulder and softly calling out his name. When he opened his eyes, Dean's green ones were looking back at him. This time they didn't look angry, just full of frustration and worry. Dean silently helped Castiel stand and onto the back of his horse. From the corner of his eye, Castiel could see the wolf lying in a pool of dark blood, a gunshot wound still oozing from its side.

Dean didn't say a word the entire ride back to the Manor. He didn't rebuke Castiel for the rash decision he made that ended with him seriously hurt. He didn't comment when Castiel rested his forehead in the crook of Dean's neck and placed his arms around Dean's waist. He only tried to make sure Castiel stayed awake.

When an especially rough bump jostled Castiel's hurt wrist too much or when the cool wind whipped around to Castiel's back and stung the exposed skin through his shredded shirt, Castiel would tightly grip fabric on the front of Dean's jacket until the pain lessened. Dean didn't say anything about it; he set his face in blank determination and will his own personal horse to get back to the Manor faster.

Dean got as close to the Manor as he could and quickly after that gentle hands eased Castiel to the ground. He called for someone to find a woman named Jody, practically carried Castiel into the kitchen.

He carefully set Castiel in a chair before hurrying around the kitchen collecting various things Castiel couldn't see. It was beginning to take too much effort to keep his eyes open

"You'll need to take your shirt off."

It took a second for Castiel to register what Dean had said. His brain had to fight through a thick fog.

"What?"

Dean reached out a hand to the part of the shirt covering Castiel's uninjured shoulder.

Castiel flinched away from him. "Don't touch me."

"Your wounds need to be cleaned before they can be stitched up. I'll be quick, you've already lost too much blood" The man came over with a bowl of warm water and a clean rag. Dean shed his jacket and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt past his elbows.

He managed to focus on the freckles that dusted the skin along Dean's nose and cheekbones instead of his own blood smeared across Dean's shirt and hands. "I would give you something for the pain, but you might have a concussion. Now lean onto the table so I can see your back."

Castiel passed out seconds after Dean touched the rag to his skin.

What felt like minutes later, Castiel slowly opened his eyes to see an unfamiliar woman staring at him.

"Look who decided to finally join the land of the living." The woman gave him a motherly simile and brushed a few strands of her short hair out of her face. "My name is Jody."

Castiel tried to sit up fully, but Jody pushed him back down to rest against his inclined pillows. "How long was I asleep?"

"You were pretty much unconscious and unresponsive for three days. Had Dean worried sick, would sit here with you for hours waiting for you to wake up. The others were worried about you too."

"I highly doubt Dean cares that much about me. He pretty much hated me from first moment he saw me."

"Sounds like the two of you have a lot to talk about when he gets back from a meeting."

Castiel stayed silent and thought about Dean until his body had a chance to catch up to his mind. All the nerve-endings under his skin jolted awake and sent shivers of uncomfortable pain all over his body. Jody noticed his distress and helped him drink a bitter tasting tea. She apologised that she didn't have anything stronger at the time.

"What was the extent of my injuries?" he asked the woman.

She sighed. "The bite to your shoulder dislocated it but the teeth managed not to severely damage any muscle or bones. The cuts on your back were mostly superficial although they were deep enough to need stitches and to cause major blood were a few cuts and scratches on your arms and legs. Your wrist wasn't broken but close to it. It will need to be braced and supported for a few weeks. Blood loss along with dehydration and pure exhaustion cause you to become unconscious, and out of all of that you somehow saved yourself from a concussion. Count yourself lucky, you could be dead right now."

Jody stayed with him for a few more minutes, telling him he needed to stay in bed the rest of the week to heal some more. She then explained some other things he could or couldn't do until he had fully recovered. She left with a promise to see him again soon and to send someone up with some food.

Castiel wasn't expecting Dean to be the one to deliver his food. Bobby came with him but stayed in the doorway. Dean set a tray carrying a steaming bowl of broth and a tall pitcher of cool water down on the nightstand to the side of Castiel's good arm .

"Do you feel better?" asked Dean.

"I thought you would start yelling at me by now."

"I didn't mean to make you upset," he paused and turned to Bobby before looking back at Castiel. "You weren't supposed to be there. My...father doesn't like when strangers get too close to his private study. Besides, without my help, you'd be dead right now."

"I didn't ask for your help. I can protect myself." Castiel felt

Dean looked pointedly at all of Castiel's injuries. "Fine."

He purposely strode out of the room not looking back at Castiel or Bobby.

"Give Dean some time. He has good intentions, but doesn't always execute them in the best way." Bobby sounded like he was dealing with small children bickering at one another. He followed after Dean and left Castiel alone with his thoughts.

The rest of the week moved slowly for Castiel.

Jody visited him everyday after lunch to check his progress. She was surprised to see that he was healing rather quickly; the stitches would come out at the end of the week if they were healed enough, and Castiel's wrist could be unwrapped from it's bandage a week after that. Every time she left for the day, Jody reminded him how lucky he was Dean found him in time.

Bobby brought him books to read while he was awake. Castiel disagreed with the ideas in the first book he read. It was about a short war took place hundreds of years ago in the east that. Many of the details including the outcome of the war was incorrect and went against what Castiel's Academy books said happened. When Castiel confronted the old man about it, he simply said his books never lied. Castiel didn't bother to argue back.

Jo was the main one to bring Castiel's meals to his room. In the beginning had felt guilt in not staying with him so he wouldn't have gotten lost in the Manor. Castiel told her that he was never upset with her.

Benny and Ash also stopped by his room to apologize on morning. Castiel see how sincere they were managed to forgive them. The pair visited him often after that.

Sam checked in with him when others weren't in the room. Castiel genuinely enjoyed Sam's compan. The younger boy would bring his a book to read quietly while Castiel read his own, or Sam would his personal chess set in an attempt to teach Castiel to play the game. They didn't talk unless necessary, but when they did, everything was kept to neutral topics.

Dean never came to visit Castiel again. After two weeks, he knew he had been angry at Dean for long enough. As much as it pained Castiel to admit, it has his turn to apologize for causing so much trouble.

...

Jody released Castiel from bedrest on a thursday, allowing him to stretch and walk around the room.

The scars on his back were still red and tender, the pain in his shoulder had subsided to a dull ache, and his wrist was securely wrapped and held in a sling against his chest. Jody warned him to be careful and to not push his body farther than it could go at one time.

Everyday Castiel added a little more distance down the hallway outside his room before his body started to protested and he needed one of the Guards watching him to help him back into bed.

Eventually Castiel made it to the very end of the hallway. Behind him Ash and Jo were still deep in a conversation about the best times to use a knife over a gun. In front of him two hallways came together to form a T. To the right was the staircase that lead to the kitchen and to the left was a hallway almost identical to the one where Castiel's bedroom was located. He noticed darkened windows lined the walls instead of doors. Slowly Castiel made his way further into the new hallway, surprised to find himself looking into an enormous ballroom instead of the lake and forest.

He supposed while in use, the ballroom would have looked breathtaking. But like much of the rest of the Manor, it had lost its shine. A fine layer of dust coated the marble floors and heavy drapery blocked most of the light coming in from the windows that covered the exterior walls. Even the golden accents on the crystal chandelier had tarnished.

Castiel had been to a few formal galas when he lived with his father in the Capital. As a child he had enjoyed the attention of being General Novak's youngest child at the time. Castiel didn't know what it would be like now that he was considered a man.

He stood and imagined what the room would look like during a party. Ladies in beautiful gowns and men dressed to intimidate others twirling with each other across the dance floor while an orchestra filled the entire space with music and soft conversations. He also found it amusing trying to imagine Bobby's old grumpy face in the middle of so much happiness.

Castiel was caught up inside his head and barely had time to react before Dean accidentally ran into him.

"Oh, Cas- I didn't see you standing there." Dean quickly crouched to retrieve the papers he had dropped and mumbled an apology. "Right. I'm just going to leave now. Sorry."

"Dean, wait I-" But the other man was already in the stairwell.

Castiel furrowed his eyebrows in confusion as he tried to work through Dean's actions. He gave up and slowly made his way to his room. He figured he'd stretched his legs enough for the day.

Jo and Ash hadn't even notice his absence.

Sam joined Castiel in his room after dinner. Castiel never mentioned his encounter with Dean earlier in the day. They discussed their latest assignment until Ash came to collect Sam for the night.

"Before I leave, I was wondering if you wanted to join us in the morning, every Sunday we have a family breakfast. I figured you were feeling cooped up here in this room all the time, and we do have an empty spot at the table for you, if you wanted it."

"I'll think about it." Castiel did think it would be nice to leave the room for a few hours, but he didn't want to intrude on something if it was a private, family matter.

After the younger boy left with his escort, Castiel changed into night clothes as fast as his injured arm allowed him, turned off the lights, closed the curtains, and promptly fell asleep.

Jo woke Castiel up when she knocked on his door. He kept his eyes closed as long as he could before the dream he was chasing after faded completely. Castiel shuffled out of bed and opened the door for Jo.

"Are you still wanting to come to breakfast?" she asked as she stepped inside the room. "You don't have to if you really don't want to."

"I don't want to be rude by declining Sam's offer. I need to change and then I will be ready." Castiel went into the closet grabbing the first set of clothes within reach and then went into the bathroom to change and brush his teeth. He didn't miss Jo's smirk as he tied the laces on his boots.

"Did I do something wrong?"

Jo schooled her expression. "No, you're fine. I just realized something."

Castiel walked with Jo towards the kitchen instead of furthering his questions.

Jo paused at one of the landings of the staircase. "Don't be nervous about breakfast. I know Sam said it was a family thing, but it's more like a friends thing. The only actually people related by blood there will be me and my mother and Sam and Dean."

"Not their father?"

"Mr. Winchester doesn't eat with the rest of us. He takes all his meals upstairs in his study."

"Who else will be there?"

"Bobby. He's always with the boys, kinda like a second father to them. Ash will always show up for food. He's kinda like the weird cousin that is slightly tolerable. Jody comes every once in a while if she doesn't have any patients. Bobby's friend, Rufus, has come a few times before, but he probably won't be there this morning."

"What about Benny? Isn't he in your group of friends?"

"Benny has his own family. He spends all his free time at home."

When Castiel and Jo had reached the kitchen doors, he steeled himself for awkwardness. Unlike the first time he had been in the kitchen, two of the tables were pushed together in a long row with chairs around the edges. Jo pointed to an empty spot at the end next to Sam for Castiel to sit at. Dean's carefully blank face looked everywhere but at Castiel from his seat directly across from him. Jo took her seat between Dean and her mother, and Bobby sat at the end of the long table opposite of the only unoccupied seat.

"Good morning," said Ellen. "Now that everyone's here, dig in."

Running down the center of the table were platters laden with food: eggs, sweet rolls and biscuits, hot sausages, gravies and other unknown sauces, and pitchers of juice, sweetened tea, and water.

Once he finished his second serving of food, Castiel placed his silverware on his plate and leaned slightly back in his chair. Everyone was finishing up around him too. He looked across at Dean who still wasn't making eye contact or talking with Castiel. The rest of the table had noticed it too.

"So, Castiel," said Sam after finishing a forkful of eggs. "Did you like the food?"

"Yes, very much. It reminded me of the times my sister and I had enough free time in the morning to eat together. Although she usually only made toast and eggs."

Ellen offered to make Castiel anything he wanted for next week's breakfast. Ash, Jo, and Sam offered their opinions too and soon all five of them were deep in planning the upcoming breakfast. Dean was only who remained silent.

A phone ringing broke up the conversation. Bobby stood to answer it and the conversation only lasted a short minute.

Bobby walked over to where Dean was sitting, "We need to go." He didn't wait for the younger man to follow.

"Do you really have to leave right now?" asked Sam to Dean.

"Sorry, Sammy. You know I don't make the rules." Dean looked at the clock on the wall. "I should be done after lunch."

"But that means that after lunch I'll be with Bobby all afternoon. You said-"

"I know what I said, Sammy. I promise we'll do something together before dinner." He ruffled his little brother's hair.

"And don't call me Sammy, Jerk. I'm not twelve."

"Whatever. See you later." Dean looked over his shoulder at Castiel for a second. "Bye, Cas."

A few minutes later, Ellen enlisted Castiel and Sam to help pack up the leftovers. They made several packages and handed them over to Jo and Ash so they could deliver to people around the Manor.

When they were done, Sam lead Castiel out of the kitchen to a sunny alcove with a window bench that looked out to the gates of the Manor. Sam explained to Castiel that he would be studying with Bobby for a few hours and that Castiel could join him instead of reading alone in his room. Castiel had started to missed his classes at Academy and quickly took up the younger boy's offer.

"I understand why Bobby had to go to a meeting, but why did Dean go too?" Castiel asked Sam as they looked out to the slowly brightening day.

"Dean's planning to take over for our father when he turns twenty-one at the beginning of next year. He sits in with Bobby during meetings to learn how to run everything."

"Why is Dean taking control so young?" There was nothing wrong with John stepping down and giving his power to Dean when he turned twenty-one, but families usually waited until the heir was older and had more experience with leading the country.

Sam shrugged his shoulders as much as he could from where they held his legs against his chest. "It's like your Officer's Exam. He's doing it because he can." His voice dropped to just above a whisper. "He's been waiting for a awhile now anyway."

They remained silent until Jo and Ash found the two of them. Jo mentioned it was Sam's favorite spot to hide while she took Castiel back to his room.

"A maid brought up some new books to your room to look through before this afternoon. Please don't go anywhere, if you need something call the Guard station. I'll be back later to take you to your lesson with Sam."

Susingly, Castiel didn't feel the need to escape. The terrible anxiety he had felt on his first day had calmed almost completely. A

nd throughout his time stuck in bed, Castiel had made tentative friendships with the Guards that watched over him and didn't want to ruin it.

He sat down at the desk and inspected the books Bobby had left for him. One was a journal detailing a few specific battles from the Third Great War, and the other was a dissertation on the formation and internal structure of the Union written it first came to power. Castiel was quite familiar with that topic, his father had started teaching him about it at a young age, then Castiel had elected to take more specialized classes about the Union at Academy.

Castiel took out a notebook and pen and began to meticulously annotate his readings. Before his stay at the Manor, it had been a long time since Castiel had used more manual methods for taking notes. Children in Academy read their texts on screens on their desks and kept notes on electronic tablets. Castiel wished he had his own tablet that was left back at Anna's house to cross-reference Bobby's sources and the Academy's. Something wasn't lining up between the two.

He took a break from his work when lunch, a small assortment for sliced meats, cheeses and a few rolls, was delivered to his room. Castiel pushed aside his papers and watched people busying around on the back lawns outside Castiel's window while he ate. Some were tending to the flowers in the garden, pulling up weeds and trimming bushes that marked the perimeter, others were clipping the lawn's grass and cleaning dirt and grime from the fountains and sidewalks. It had been beautiful before, but now life was bleeding back to the surface. Castiel opened the unlocked windows to let fresh air circulate through the room. He didn't mind when the cool breeze ruffled his hair or his papers.

Jo collected him shortly after he finished his meal. She lead him through the maze of stairs and hallways, never pausing to think about the turn next.

Castiel questioned Jo on her ability to never get lost.

"I've lived in this place pretty much my entire life," she answered, "When I was little, I played games with Dean and Sam all over the Manor. That's also how about all the secret passages."

Castiel was surprised. "What?"

"This place was built around the beginning of the war. They used the secret passages to smuggle people and things in and out of the Manor. Once we found them, they were boarded up, but I know for a fact that Dean still uses the one by the kitchen." Jo grimaced. "I don't think I was supposed to tell you that."

She didn't speak the rest of the way.

"Who am I going to tell," he mumbled. Castiel felt a lot lonelier in that moment.

The feeling ended when Sam greeted him as Castiel entered the room. It was similar to the room Castiel was first brought to the night he lost his sister. Instead of Guards, bookshelves lined the walls while short sturdy tables filled in the rest of the circular space. Sam smiled brightly, but the rest of his appearance was different. He looked tired, his skin was paler than Castiel remembered it to be, and his shaggy brown hair stuck up in random places. Even if the younger boy wasn't feeling good, Sam didn't let it interfere with keeping up with Castiel and Bobby in the classroom.

Sam was smart for his age. But Castiel was also advanced too, and Bobby had far more wisdom than both the boys combined. Castiel respected Bobby's knowledge although he still didn't agree with everything the man said at times.

The discussion over the journal went smoothly since it was a personal account of a soldier in the war. The soldier's story coincided with other known details with the battles.

Castiel didn't think knowing a single man's thoughts and opinions while he was fighting was important to his education. The fighting was over and those days had long passed.

"I don't understand why this was part of the curriculum?" stated Castiel in a lull in the conversation.

Bobby fixed his gaze at him. "Sometimes we don't have to understand something to appreciate it. You're young. You can't see how one person can change something bigger than himself."

After that they moved on to talking about the flaws in the way the Union operated. Castiel's entire being started to protest what was being said.

Sam would find a fault in something, even backing it up with text from one of the books, and stated a simple solution to the problem. Castiel learned years ago that things were set up the way they were, so that there were no flaws. No ways to fight the system and allow another war to destroy the world.

Surely a man that worked as the advisor for the Commander would see what he was telling Castiel and Sam was incorrect.

Castiel managed to hold his tongue the rest of the ended when Bobby noticed Sam growing sicker; he called for a Guard to help Sam back to his room. Castiel didn't stay much longer after the younger boy left.

He was almost done organizing his notes when Bobby came and stood in front of him.

"I know you don't agree with some things I've said today, boy. But pretty soon you're gonna have to figure out what you believe for yourself. You can't keep riding on other's opinions your whole life. I hope you realize you don't want to be just another soldier in your father's army."

Castiel's escort that day had to jog to catch up with how fast he left the room.

His feelings were mixed up again; he was angry at Bobby, annoyed with Dean, and frustrated at himself for letting everything get out of control in the first place. He ignored any attempts at conversation and requested to be left alone for the rest of the night.

The food that was brought to him for dinner went cold.

...

Castiel was glad t the people in the Manor had trusted him enough to unlock the door to his balcony.

He had sat at his desk and stared at the outside world long after the sun went down. But after a few hours his back ached from the stiff chair, and his body made its hunger known. Castiel stood to stretch his legs and to grab something off the food tray that was left for him outside the door.

Castiel had spent most of the night brooding over Bobby's comment. The Academy had taught him well. He trusted his father and older siblings, even if their relationship was rocky at best. He was going to become an Union officer because he wanted to do it not because someone was forcing him to do it.

Castiel took a bite out of the apple he picked up off the plate while he walked out onto the balcony. The night was perfect. It was warm enough not to need a jacket to cover his arms, but the cool breeze off the water reminded Castiel that summer was ending and soon winter would arrive. Stars shined brightly against a dark, cloudless sky. It took Castiel a minute to realize he wasn't the only one taking time to enjoy the peacefulness of the night.

Dean sat on the stone floor of the next balcony a few yards over to Castiel's right. His back rested against the brick of the Manor and his legs stretched out to the metal railing. He was caught off guard when Castiel spoke.

"You called me Cas."

Dean looked up in confusion. "Hmm?"

"Yesterday when we ran into each other in the hall. You called me Cas."

"I didn't mean to. Castiel is just a little-"

"It's fine, you can call me Cas. I just wasn't expecting it, only my brother Gabriel has ever called me something other than Castiel."

Castiel studied Dean; he appeared relaxed and more open sitting under the moonlight.

"Why did you save my life?" He asked Dean after a few moments of silence.

Dean reverted back to not looking at Castiel. "The moment you stepped onto the grounds of the Manor, you became my responsibility. And I did make a promise to watch out for you. I try not to break promises."

Castiel sank down to the ground.

"I think it's time for me to apologize," said Castiel. "I've been acting like an upset child lately."

Dean huffed out a bit of laughter and for the first time, really looked at Castiel. "It's not like I've been doing any better. Most of this is my fault anyway." Castiel met Dean's eyes as the other man continued to speak. "Do you think we could start over? Since we both had a part in screwing everything up."

Castiel nodded and mirrored Dean's position on the floor. He liked this version of Dean much more than the one that was ignoring him earlier.

"So, Cas, brings you outside at a time like this?" Dean said in a joking voice.

"I like to gaze at the stars sometimes, though I think there is a better view from my sister's house. The ground is flatter and there's no trees to obscure the view. What about you? I didn't think any of the other rooms on this floor were being used."

"Sam's room is around the corner. After I check on him for the night, I snuck out here to watch the stars too. My new room doesn't have a balcony."

They began a conversation about what they saw in the night sky after that.

Dean would pick out a constellation, and Castiel told him the story behind the name. Eventually they started making up their own constellations and stories. They only stopped to laugh at how strange some of the tales had gotten. Dean finished telling him a story of two people that had such an incredible love that when they died their story was written in the stars when Castiel started to yawn.

Castiel spoke softly close to falling asleep against the side railing. "If you're referring to the Gemini constellation, they're twins not lovers."

"It's just a story, one that my mother used to read to me. It doesn't really matter." Dean stood up and wiped his hands off on his pants. "Besides, I think it's time to say goodnight for us. See to in the morning, Cas."

Castiel also stood up. "I had fun tonight, Dean Winchester."

"Me too. What do you say about meeting again tomorrow night?"

Castiel gave him a simple yes and went back into his room after saying goodnight. Somehow he found enough energy wash the day's dirt away before crawling in between the silky sheets. He didn't have any trouble falling asleep.

In the morning, Cas felt a lot better than he had in a very long time. His body didn't ache, his mind was well rested, and for once when he woke up, Castiel didn't feel like a captive in an elaborate prison.

He was up and ready before Jo even brought Castiel his breakfast. She entered the room and placed the tray on its usual spot on the corner of his desk. Jo leaned against the closet's door frame as she rattled off the news for the day.

"Sam's really sick today, so lessons with Bobby have been canceled. Dean told me he trusts you enough that you can now be unsupervised in the Manor; he's busy with something and probably won't be seen today. Oh, and this was left outside the door." She handed Cas a small book that had been hidden in a pocket of her jacket. "I agreed to help Ash update the security around the Manor, and since Dean's all of a sudden trusts you, I guess you can roam the place a bit. But remember that there are parts of the Manor that are still off limits. No one wants a repeat of the last time."

Cas thanked her for the food and the book before she left. He knew the book had been left by Dean. Castiel was also glad the man trusted him enough to be left alone, even if it was only for a few hours.

Castiel took his time eating. When he was finished, he grabbed the book left to him by Dean and found a place to read. Cas made his way down the hallway and was about to turn towards the staircase when he decided to look at the ballroom again. He expected it to be the same as the last time he saw it, dull and lifeless, but instead someone had drawn back the curtains, opened all the tall windows and was attempting to sweep the floors. Clouds of dust filled the air but eventually the floor started to shine. Castiel left when another person joined the first and started washing all of the windows.

Somehow Castiel managed to make his way back to the alcove Sam had lead him to earlier. He stared at the book in his hands for a moment. It was really old. The hard red cover was scratched and faded from being held in its owner's hands, and the spine was cracked from being read many times in the years since its creation. Whether it currently belonged to Dean or someone else, it had obviously been well loved.

He took his time reading the novel, running his fingers over every dog-eared page and stopping at underlined sections of text as he tried to figure out the significance to the reader. Castiel let the quiet of the empty hallway and warmth from the sun-heated glass lull him into a peaceful comfort as he dove deeper and deeper into the story of a young man who set off in a quest to find his true love with only the stars to guide him and offer companionship. It was the more detailed version of the story Dean told Cas the night before. The one Mary apparently read to him at night. He was surprised that Dean had shared something so personal with someone who was practically still a stranger.

Castiel finished the book in the late afternoon, just as his stomach started to grumble in hunger. He attempted to find the kitchen hoping Ellen would have something for him to snack on that wouldn't interfere with dinner.

An old woman stopped him and requested his help in replace a painting on the wall. He showed her his still hurt wrist and apologized that he couldn't offer assistance. They parted ways when she went to find someone to help her.

Ellen sent Castiel off to his room with a few pastries to tide him over until dinner was brought to his room. Cas spent the rest of the night waiting to meet again with Dean on the balcony.

"Did you like the book?"

Cas looked up to see Dean leaning towards him against the railings.

"Yes. It was very enjoyable."

Dean smiled. "It was one of my favorites growing up."

"I could tell."

That night they had a conversation about literature. Castiel confessed his taste leaned towards a more academic nature; Dean laughed and told him that could easily be fixed and promised to have a stack of book outside his door by the morning.

Then they gradually got into the topic of living in the busy Capital compared to the slower way of life of the countryside. Both agreed that they didn't like the city.

"I wonder if we've ever met before, back in the Capital."

"It could have been a possibility. We would have been very young." replied Castiel.

Dean looked as if he was searching through all the thoughts in his mind for something. "Yeah, maybe."

The late night meetings continued for a few more nights.

They got to know each other as Dean and Castiel, not the sons of General Novak and Commander Winchester.

Cas liked it better this way, because to him, Dean was starting to resemble the boy in the painting with bright eyes and soft smile, and not the hard-hearted and angry person he was first introduced as being.

A few nights into their routine, Dean tired demeanor changed when he suddenly shot up straight like he had been shocked.

"Meet me in the gardens tomorrow morning."

Cas looked at Dean strangely. "Why?"

"You've mentioned them a few times already, and they look much better up close than they do from up here. Besides, I know you have to hate feeling cooped up inside from the stories you've told me. I can show parts of the Manor you haven't seen yet."

"I have been getting tired of staring at the walls all day."

"Is that a yes? Because if it is, I might also get Rufus at the stables to let us go out for a ride in the afternoon."

"And I do miss my horse." Castiel hadn't seen Grace since she was found and brought back to the Manor's stables. "Where do I need to meet you?"

Dean jumped up and pointed to a fountain below their feet.

"There's a door right by the kitchens," he said. "You can't miss it."

"I'll be there when the sun rises."

Dean smiled brightly, one of few that Dean had showed Castiel while they carried out their late night rendezvous. He thanked Cas and hurried inside to go to his own room for the night.

Castiel thought about Dean's evolving behavior and how it had changed in the past week. The sudden invitation to the gardens certainly did not help the puzzle that former Dean Winchester.

There was something there that wasn't there before, and Castiel didn't know what it was.

He stood on his balcony a few minutes after the other man went inside, staring up at the stars like they did the first night. A chilly breeze forced Cas inside and into bed for the night.


	3. Truth

The moment the day's first light touched the grounds of the Manor, Castiel was awake.

He quickly showered eager to get noticed his own appearance had changed in the weeks he had been in the Manor. His dark hair was on the verge of sticking up uncontrollably and his skin had paled slightly from the summer.

Cas went into the closet after leaving the steamy bathroom and grabbed clothes comfortable enough to wear if they decided to go riding. At the last second, Cas grabbed a thin jacket in case it got too cold while they were out. It was still early in the fall, but the days were starting to cool off rapidly. A few nights Dean and Cas had to wrap up in blankets to keep themselves warm while they talked.

Jo was waiting for him in the hallway; she held an apple and a biscuit out to Castiel. "Did you think you could sneak off without me knowing?"

Castiel's eyes widened in surprise.

"Don't worry." Jo smirked. "Dean told me about it. I thought you could use something to eat before you left."

"When did Dean tell you? We were up late last night."

She shrugged slowly. "Dean can't sleep sometimes, and I was stationed at the Guard post all night. He came to keep me company and told me the plans for today."

"Thanks for the food, but I should be going."

"Yeah, sure, I wouldn't want to keep you from Dean." Cas started down the hallway towards the staircase. He was about to turn the corner when she called out again, "I knows he's kinda cute, but don't do anything stupid. And if you see Benny lurking around, tell him he got signed up to babysit you two idiots today."

Castiel didn't stop to reply to the girl, afraid that she would see the blush that crept across his cheeks. He couldn't deny Dean's attractiveness.

Dean was waiting for him by the fountain, as promised, with a coarse blanket in one hand and a basket in the other. When Castiel joined his side, he ushered them along one of the stone pathways through the gardens. Cas noticed Dean left the basket and blanket on the stoney ledge of the fountain.

"I didn't realize you liked to go out on picnics, Dean." Cas said teasingly to Dean.

Dean looked flustered by Castiel's attempt at a joke for a split second. "Ellen made me take it in case we get hungry later," he cleared his throat to further compose himself. "Besides, Sammy has me beat in the loving picnics category."

Castiel laughed. "Is that so?" He couldn't see either of the Winchester brothers enjoying the activity.

"Sam had the biggest crush on this girl Jess, the daughter of my mother's assistant, when he was younger. He followed her around like a puppy until she finally gave him attention. After that they were inseparable. The ran around the garden having 'picnic dates' all the time. Jess moved shortly after Mom...after Mom died. There was another girl Sam liked a few years, Sarah, but she never got treated out to a picnic."

Dean and Cas slowly drifted in between the rows of various flowers and plants that lined the walkway as they ambled through the garden. It was easy for Cas to get caught up in the simple moment, feeding off Dean's enthusiasm, smelling the faint floral scent from the flowers around him as it mixed with the crisp autumn air. The sun warmed his skin as it removed dew from the ground.

Dean was right. He had missed the outdoors. From his window, Cas could see the whole layout of the garden, all the way to the forest behind it. But he had missed all the small details that could only be seen if he walked in the gardens himself.

Dean paused mid-thought and looked at him concerned. "Hey, Cas, you alright?"

"I'm fine." Cas smiled and the other man returned it. "Now what were you saying?"

Dean rolled his eyes, but started over telling Cas about the healing properties of the purple petals he held in his hand.

They made their way through the rest of the garden only stopping when Dean pointed out another interesting fact about a specific plant or shared a funny story about himself and Sam from their early childhood adventures. When they made it all the way down the long walkway to the treeline along the shore of the lake, Dean and Cas retraced their steps back towards the stables.

Benny was waiting for them at the door with the basket and blanket in hand.

"Not you too, Benny."

He shrugged. "Just doin' my job. And I came to offer you a deal. Take this so Ellen will stop hounding us both, and I won't hover over you like I'm supposed to."

Dean glance quickly at Cas. "Deal. We'll be back in the village if you need us."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Benny asked Dean without taking his eyes off Cas.

"I'm sure. I trust him."

"Okay then. I was just heading there myself. Gonna go check in with the wife." Benny left the things for them on an empty bench beside the wide stable doors.

"Don't mind Benny," said Dean when Cas looked apprehensively to the doors the Guard exited from. "He's just protective. The fact that his wife is about to have their first child doesn't help either."

The first time Cas had entered the stables, he wasn't in them long enough to really look around. The first and biggest section was empty due to it being reserved for any guests at the Manor.

Cas rushed to Grace the moment he saw her in one of the stalls. He was surprised to find his horse had been moved to the private section of the stable with the Winchester horses.

He was relieved to see that she had been well taken care of in the weeks Cas had been at the Manor.

Castiel noticed here were only four horses in the private section including Grace: Dean's massive black horse, a brown horse that was a bit smaller than Dean's but leaner, and a third horse that looked old and tired.

"On the way back to the Manor, you kept asking about Grace," Dean spoke from the stall next to Cas. He was grooming his own horse. "It took me awhile to figure out you were asking about your horse. Kinda odd name, don't you think?"

Cas nodded. "Grace was originally a gift for my sister when she was young. Anna tried to go too fast one day and fell and broke her arm. She never wanted to ride a horse again after that, and then gave Grace to me. I haven't had the heart to change her name since. I don't think your horse's name couldn't be any stranger than my horse's anyway."

"Pala is named after the greatest car ever produced before or after the war which makes it an awesome name."

Cas was amused at Dean's slightly offended look. As the prepared for their ride, Dean briefly introduced Cas to the rest of the horses. The oldest horse named Zep belonged to Dean's father and the other horse, Aero, belonged to Sam.

Before they set off to leave, Dean disappeared behind a door at the end of the stable. He came back out a few seconds later with something wrapped in butcher's paper clutched tightly in his hands.

He held it out to Cas.

At first, Cas didn't know what to expect. But the moment he realized what it was, his knees almost buckled in shock.

Dean had given Cas his blue riding cloak.

"One of my Guards found it the morning after you were brought to the Manor. It was torn and in terrible condition, but I knew someone that was willing to fix it."

Cas took a closer look at his cloak. The tear had been sewn back together with thick silvery thread, and whoever had fixed it added a swirled design on the rest of the cloak to hide the fixed part. The inside of the cloak had also been relined with a dark grey cloth. It was obvious the repairs were made by talented hands.

"Thank you, Dean." Cas carefully re-wrapped the cloak and put it in an empty pocket on the back of Grace's saddle. It was too precious to wear at the moment. "I thought I had lost it forever."

Dean humbly accepted Castiel's appreciation and quickly finished preparing for the day out.

When they were finally ready to leave, Cas mounted his horse and slowly trotted out beside Dean. They traveled along a similar path through the gardens, but continued into the trees instead of turning back at the edge of the forest. Like the road leading to the Manor, the path that went into the treeline was partially hidden to the untrained eye.

Dean and Cas rode in companionable silence. All the late night conversations they had, allowed them to be comfortable in each other's presence. It was a drastic change from just a few short weeks before. Castiel hoped that by now Dean saw him as a friend, as he certainly saw Dean as one.

Because the trail was only wide enough for one horse, Cas dutifully followed behind Dean, though where they were going was blocked from Castiel's eyeline. They rounded a bend and the trees thinned out into a clearing.

Nestled inside was a cluster of small buildings. The smell of freshly baked bread wafted in from further down the clearing.

Castiel was beyond surprised. He never suspected an entire town to be hidden behind the Manor. At least Dean and Benny's conversation starting to make sense to him now.

"Dean, what is all this?" Cas asked while he gazed at all the different buildings neatly radiating out from a small public square. Ivy grew on the stone façades, and Cas could see tall trees canopied above the buildings that skirted around the edges of the town. Everything was worn smooth and clean and simple. It was nothing like the town closest to Anna's house.

"This town has been here since before the Manor was even built. Now the people who live here are employed by my family. They work for us occasionally, and in return we give them protection."

Castiel's confusion grew some. "What do they need to be protected from?"

"There are bad people in this world, Cas. People who aren't afraid to hurt others." Bitterness tinged Dean's voice.

Dean's face was unreadable as they came up to the edge of the town. He motioned Cas to dismount, and together they made their way into the center of town on foot with their horses trailing behind them.

Dean grabbed a satchel from Pala when they stopped in the square and tied the horses to hitching poles. He seemed back to normal as he turned to face Cas. Dean smiled softly at him. "I have to meet with a few people, if that's okay? It's shouldn't take too long."

Castiel returned the smile. He didn't like it when something visibly bothered Dean. "I don't, I wouldn't want to keep you from your duties. And if it's not an intrusion, I would like to come with you."

Dean let out a quiet laugh. "You thought I was going to make you stand here with the horses and wait for me?"

Cas nodded. He didn't think he would be allowed to be involved in any official business.

"No, Cas. Why do you think I wanted to come here in the first place? I _wanted_ you to be with me while I did this. I thought it'd be interesting for you."

"It is interesting. And I am glad you brought me." Castiel felt his cheeks heat up. "Sorry for the misunderstanding."

Dean lightheartedly brushed off any apologies Castiel tried to give him until Dean had to laughed at Castiel again.

"Don't worry about it, Cas. Just try to have fun. Okay?"

"Okay."

First they visited the town's bakery. Dean discussed problems with the baker and his wife while Cas watched the other employees prepare for the busy day. Before they left, the baker offered Dean and Cas a pie fresh from the oven. Neither of them refused the offer.

Then they visited an old man who oversaw a small plot of land that was used to grow food for the Manor. The man sent one of his sons to escort the pair to the field after Dean agreed to check on it's condition.

Dean and Cas playfully knocked their shoulders together to and from the small field.

They methodically made their way down Dean's list of people to visit. Some were weary of Castiel's presence, but the moment they saw Dean, they had enough trust in Cas to be warm and welcoming to him. Cas was sure he got just as many hugs and motherly kisses on the check as Dean had gotten.

When they finished meeting with people and returned to their horses, the whole town was awake and buzzing. People moved from place to place, stopping to greet Dean, and then Cas too. Castiel saw Jody for a few seconds in the crowd, and knew Benny was hovering around in case something bad was to happen to either of them.

A group of children were waiting patiently to see Dean and his new friend. Dean reached into a saddlebag on Pala and pulled out a handful of candies which he passed to Cas before getting a new one for himself. They made quick work of making sure all the eager children were happy. And soon the air was filled with childish laughter as Dean entertained the kids swarming around him. A few chuckles joined in from Cas and amused parents.

In all the different situations Castiel had seen Dean in, he thought this one suited the man the best. Dean was as relaxed as he was during their discussions late at night.

Something started to stir deep within Castiel. It felt stronger than all the other feelings he had ever felt towards Dean; stronger than all his anger, confusion, and frustration combined. It created a sense of warmth and contentment and happiness all bundled messily together inside Castiel's chest. The specific feeling was unknown to Castiel. It made Cas want to forget everything else but Dean.

He knew he was staring openly at Dean, but he couldn't tear his eyes away. A woman in the crowd caught his eyes. She glanced over at Dean, who was now telling a story to the surrounding children, and then looked back at Castiel with a knowing smile.

He turned away from the crowd before anyone could see his cheeks become flushed.

...

Dean and Cas left the tiny town for lunch as soon as they were able to slip away from the crowd. By the time they had finished visiting different people and subdued the excited mass of children and their parents, it was well past noon. Both men stifled a laugh when their stomach grumbled in sync with each other while they went to retrieve the pie set aside for them.

Cas helped gather the blanket and basket Ellen had given them earlier in the morning and followed Dean once more into the trees.

Dean asked what Cas thought of the village, he answered honestly. "I've never seen any place like it. Though I don't think they liked me at first."

Dean reached out to steady Cas when he momentarily lost his balance stepping over a loose root. "Don't take it personally."

"I didn't."

"Those people learned the hard way not to trust people easily."

They walked the rest of the way shoulder by shoulder in case Castiel happened to stumble again. After a few minutes on foot, they came to a shallow creek with a grassy edge far enough away from the water that they wouldn't get wet while they sat and enjoyed the lunch Ellen had packed.

Cas wrapped his jacket tighter around himself as he sat with Dean in the cool shade beside the slow, gurgling water.

"Are you cold?" asked Dean. He held up the blanket in an offering.

Cas shook his head. "I'll be alright."

Dean placed the blanket down between them, closer to Cas if he decided he needed it.

"You were good with those people, Dean. Especially with the children in the square."

Dean tried to look nonchalant and brush off the compliment, but Cas knew Dean well enough by then to know that he actually appreciated the comment.

"It was one of the first things my mother taught me," he said. "how to treat the people that look up to us. She would always told me and Sammy not to abuse our position or our power."

Dean shuffled around on the grass trying get comfortable. He didn't meet Castiel's eyes while he talked.

"You probably know that family didn't always live in the Manor. We only visited it in the late summer for a vacation from the Capital. One of my earliest memories of coming to the countryside was of my mother taking me to the nearest town for the Harvest Festival. She would wear simple dresses like the other women in town and would talk to them while I played with the kids my age. I always came back back to the Manor covered in dirt, and my mother never cared.

"But when my mother was killed and my dad moved us permanently to the Manor away from all the prying eyes, I never wanted to go outside the gates again. I couldn't stand to see the sad, pitying looks from the people that loved my mother. I couldn't handle going to the same places that once held such happy memories of her."

"I wish I knew what it was like to have a real mother."

Dean's head snapped up and Cas thought he saw tears threatening to form in Dean's slightly red-rimmed eyes. "But I thought you said Anna-"

"Anna is my half-sister. We share the same father."

"I didn't know."

"Not many people do. My father has had many children with many different women, and my was just one of them. She died in childbirth."

"I'm so sorry, Cas."

"You don't need to be, I think it's easier never knowing her than having her taken away from me at a young age."

"Then what about Anna's mother? I've heard you talk about her before."

Cas found himself drawing unconsciously closer to Dean and had to stop himself. He focused instead on all the food laid out in the grass untouched.

"That came later. For the first year or so of my life, I was raised by a nursemaid under supervision of my father. Eventually Anna's mother volunteered to take me. Anna and her brother Gabriel were already in Academy and doing well, so my father trusted that I would be raised properly in her care. Before I was to start Academy, I was moved back to the Capital to live with my father. I liked it there. I had all my most of my older brothers around me at all times and held the attention of by busy father. I felt special.

"I never realized I didn't fit in with the rest of my brothers and sisters until one of my older brothers, Luc, said that the only reason I was treated so nicely by Father was because my mother was the only woman that he had ever loved. He pointed out the gaps in age before and after me that were nonexistent anywhere else between all the rest of our siblings. The next day I begged my father to let me live with Anna, who was living by herself out her in the countryside by that time, and he eventually agreed. I've been living with Anna ever since."

Dean's face showed a mixture of emotions by the end of Castiel's story. "Sounds like you've had a complicated life."

"So have you, Dean."

After a pause of silence, they both agreed to move on to happier topics.

Castiel told stories of all the trouble he and Gabriel, and sometimes Anna, got into as children. Dean tried to tell a crazier story featuring him and his brother, and the rare times they got Jo involve too. They ate, and laughed, and enjoyed the crisp fall day. Later when Dean and Cas finished the last crumb of the pie, the two laid out side by side relaxing in the warmth the sun provided.

In the complexities of his life, Castiel had never had the simplicity of spending time with Dean offered. The strange feeling from the town square seeped back into his chest. He closed his eyes and felt the sunlight kiss his paled skin.

"Hey, Cas?"

Castiel felt Dean shift beside him, but he continued to keep eyes closed. "Yes, Dean?"

"Can I ask you something?"

Cas felt his heart beat faster against his will. He took a breath to slow it down again. "Yes." He also shifted to face Dean, not knowing what the other man could be wanting to know.

"The tenth anniversary of my mother's death is less than two weeks away." When Dean stopped, Cas nodded for him to continue. "This year the Union suggested we hold a formal ball in her name, and my family agreed to it. I was- I was wondering if you wanted to go with me- as a friend of course. Besides it would be weird for you not to go, 'cause you've been living at the Manor for over a month. And you've-"

"Dean, stop." Cas had never seen Dean this flustered before, he would have found it funnier too if it wasn't for the slightly hurt look he had on his face when Castiel interrupted him. "I would love to go with you, as a friend."

Dean's face lit up brightly. "I was really hoping you'd say yes. I'm not too big on making public appearances."

"You didn't need to worry me, Dean."

They finished their meal beside the creek and walked back to retrieve the horses after deciding to go back to the Manor for the rest of the day. Dean bid goodbye to Cas in front of the kitchen doors before leaving to find his little brother.

Cas was content to spend the rest of the night alone. Spending the entire day with Dean turned out better than he expected it to go. If he was to do the same thing the first week he had stayed at the Manor, everything would have been stiff and awkward. A lot less laughter would've been involved.

On the ride back, Cas mentioned seeing people working inside the Manor and around the grounds. Dean explained to him that everyone was preparing for the ball which was scheduled to be held in ten days. And because many years had past since the last time anything had been publicly held at the Manor, more work was needed to cleaned it up and make it presentable to the Union officials that were coming.

Castiel complimented him on how nice it was looking already. He confessed that he first thought the Manor was cold and uninviting, but now it was starting to feel welcoming and worthy of holding the Winchester name.

"I don't mean to sound so sappy," said Castiel.

"No, I'm happy to hear what you think."

The late afternoon was quiet for Cas. Jo asked for details when she brought Castiel's dinner to his room. He told her everything but excluded the new feelings that he had discovered for Dean. Until he could figure out exactly what they were, no one else was going to know about them.

Long after the sun went down, Cas met Dean on their respective balconies.

Castiel spoke first. "What did you do with Sam today when we got back?"

"The usual," Dean replied. Cas noticed he had a thick blanket wrapped around his shoulders. "I bugged him while he was trying to read. But he got me back. As soon as I stopped, Sam started geeking out about the book. I wouldn't want to be in the same room with you two when you're geeking out together."

"I don't geek-out, Dean."

"Sure you don'."

A particularly cold blast of air forced Cas to grab a blanket from his room. Dean continued when Cas sat back down.

"I also managed to schedule a training session tomorrow for all the new Guard recruits. I remembered you saying that you had training from the Academy and thought you'd like to show off your skills."

"Are you giving me permission to beat you in a fight for the purposes of education?"

"I never said you would win against me."

"No. That's what I said. In hand-to-hand combat, I've beaten instructors twice my age and had supposedly twice the experience.

"Oh, I better rest up then," mocked Dean. "See you again early in the morning, Cas."

Cas stayed out on the balcony a little while after Dean retired to his own room. He hadn't thought about Academy in a week or two. The school once held a great significance in Castiel's life, but his time at the Winchester Manor was starting to affect the way he thought about things. He had always been taught that people were cruel and corrupt and needed the Union to govern and keep balance. Castiel was afraid he was starting to doubt the only thing he knew as the truth. But Cas pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind and went inside to get ready for bed.

Ideas like that would have to wait for another time.

A knock on the door woke Castiel up. Usually he would open the door for Jo, and she would sit on the edge of the bed or at the desk while Castiel got ready for the day.

Cas was unprepared when he opened the door and Dean stood on the other side.

He tried to keep his voice steady while he spoke to Dean. "Just give me a minute. I to...umm...change."

Cas rushed off to the bathroom with a clean set of clothes before Dean could say anything back. He couldn't help but notice Dean's own slightly stunned look, but he saw nothing out of the ordinary when he looked in the mirror. His dark hair was wildly sticking up from sleeping and his cheeks were lightly sunburnt from the day before. Nothing worthy enough to cause a reaction like Dean's.

Dean was still hovering by the door after Castiel exited the bathroom. The other man was pensively looking around the room. It hadn't changed much since Castiel's first night at the Manor. The only evidence of someone living there was the stack of books and papers strung across the surface of the desk.

"Are you okay, Dean?"

The man in question snapped back to reality and noticed Cas standing in front of him.

"Yeah. I just like the color green." Dean took one more quick glance across the room. "Ready?"

Cas nodded and walked alongside Dean to the stables.

...

Dean and Cas rode to a clearing near the village in the woods with Jo, Ash, Sam, and Benny following a few minutes behind them. A small group of people were already waiting for them to arrive. Dean informed Cas that most of the kids in the village wanted to become a Guard, but very few actually passed all the tests, with one of the major tests being hand-to-hand fighting; it didn't matter what a Guard later chose to specialized in, everyone had to pass.

After a few minutes the rest of the people participating in the training trickled in. All the potential Guards were dressed in grey uniforms a shade lighter than formal Guard attire and stood shoulder to shoulder in two rows while Dean detailed how the training session would work. First he would demonstrate example techniques with Jo or Benny, and then they would be paired up and given time to practice. At the end the candidates could challenge anyone to a match. Dean reminded the group that they would be judged and scored throughout the entire day.

He wished them luck and began on the first exercise.

Castiel was mesmerized as he watched Dean give demonstrations. His movements were sure and confident without being too cocky. It was obvious Dean knew his strengths and weakness, but also knew how to use them to his advantage. Castiel also watched how the others moved too. Jo was light and agile as danced across the grass. She was able to catch Dean a few times and used her low center of gravity to get him to the ground. Benny relied on pure strength and power to take down the person he was facing. Ash was the odd one, he always on the defensive and never outright attacked his opponents.

Sam attempted to spar with Cas, but he quickly became too out of breath to continue. He had yet to recover fully from his sickness. Castiel sat with him on the edge of the wide clearing and helped score the trainees. After watching each of the half dozen pairs for awhile, Castiel noticed that many of the people training were a few years older than Cas and Dean, but one girl in particular stood out from the others.

She couldn't have been any older than Sam. Her long dark hair was braided down her back and the sleeves of her jacket were rolled up past her elbows. From what Cas could tell, the girl was holding her own and even winning matches against men twice her size. Every break she had, she was studying the way everyone else fought. It was something he noticed only Dean and himself doing.

Dean called for a short break, and the group sat in the shade across from Cas and Sam.

"Do you know everyone here, Sam?"

"Yeah, why?" Sam looked up from studying a list of names and scores from previous tests.

"I was just interested in why everyone was here. Like that young girl with the dark hair, she looks too young to be a Guard for the Manor."

He glanced at everyone across the clearing. "Krissy? Her father was a Guard. He was killed in an accident a couple years ago, and then she wanted to become a Guard too. The same thing happen to Jo. Jo's father was a personal Guard to my father and was killed when Jo was little. I remember her begged Ellen to let her become a Guard. After lots of yelling and fighting, Ellen eventually let Jo start training. Now she's one of the best."

"I didn't know that about her."

"Jo's not the one to go around telling everyone her life story. And I think Krissy's actually older than Jo when she first started training. If someone young makes it to the end, like Krissy now or Jo back a few years ago, they'll train for a few more years under a senior officer like Ash or Benny."

"How did Benny and Ash become Guards?"

"Ash's parents died in a house fire when he was little, and Ellen and her husband took him in. This was before Jo was born. He would always break into the main Guard station and mess around with the communication and security systems. Eventually Ash worked sorted himself out and is now in charge of everything involving technology at the Manor." Sam got distracted by the sound of laughter coming from the other group.

"Unlike most of the Guards," he went on, "Benny didn't grow up here. From what I've gathered over the years, he was a Union Officer who defected. One of his superiors gave him an order, but he refused to carry it out. Later when his life was threatened because he disobeyed the people above him, Benny left the Capital and sought out protection from my father. Benny's been one of the most loyal people to my family. He's watched out for my brother me for the almost ten years. Now he's also one of Dean's closest friends."

Cas thought through the things Sam told him. "I've never heard of the Union threatening an Officer's life just because the Officer didn't follow orders. What did Benny not do?"

"I don't know. I think Dean's the only one who actually knows what happened."

Sam and Cas silently watched the others the rest of the break. Jo, Ash, Benny, and Dean had broken off by themselves and were deeply conversing about something that was apparently hysterical. Jo leaned into Dean's side as she laughed. Castiel felt jealousy shoot through his system every time she got closer and closer to him. He didn't know why he was reacting so harshly to a simple gesture between friends.

Cas took a moment to compose himself, making sure his face remained neutral. His emotions were carefully hidden by the time Dean reconvened the matches.

Dean stood in front, facing the people gathered around him. "As the instructor, I want to pick the first challenge. Cas, are you ready to lose?"

Castiel stood up and brushed the loose dirt from his pants. "I thought we decided last night that I was going to win." He joined Dean in the front of the crowd; he had been waiting for this moment the entire morning.

They got into their starting positions, and within seconds of beginning the match, Cas had Dean pinned to the ground gasping for breath as the air had knocked out of his lungs. Cas helped Dean stand.

"This time I won't go so easy on you," joked Dean.

The second time they fought, Dean got in a few jabs at Cas before ending up pinned to the ground again.

"Jeez, Cas, you are good."

The Guards in training looked in awe of Castiel.

"I did tell you, Dean."

Dean begrudgingly agreed, called the start of the challenge period, and sat down beside his little brother in the shade.

Cas was challenged by a few more people during the rest of the training session. Jo and Benny went down as easily as Dean, though they stuck around for more than two matches. Ash didn't even bother to face , surprisingly, held out the longest. After a few rounds, Cas showed the girl a few moves that took full advantage of her size and could be blended seamlessly into her already vast skillset. Soon, Krissy was the one pinning Cas down, along with everyone else.

During the breaks in between challenges, Cas would sneak a glance to Sam and Dean. Whatever they were talking about had Dean growing increasingly frustrated with his little brother.

Then Dean's attitude changed, and Castiel didn't know how the man was feeling.

All he knew was that by the time training ended and the group had dispersed, Sam looked very proud of himself.

Cas rode back the to Manor with Jo and spent the rest of the day catching up on the reading he pushed aside to spend time with Dean. He never realized how expectant he had become of their late night talks until Ash stopped by with a message from Dean.

He wouldn't be able to meet that night because Dean's father had him doing extra work because of all time he'd spent away from the Manor.

Whatever work the Commander had Dean doing in the middle of the night, Cas selfishly wanted it to stop.

* * *

><p>Sam had started to notice a change in his older brother lately. For the past week or so, Dean had been in a better mood. Bobby even noticed the change in Dean.<p>

He was happy and smiling, and for once, Dean was pleasant to be around. Which was even more odd considering how close it was to the date their mother died. By this time he should be sullen and reclusive, not the complete opposite.

When Dean came over to sit with him, Sam decided it was time to confront Dean.

"Hey, Sammy."

"Hi, Dean." Sam patted the grass next beside him wanting Dean to sit down.

His brother sat and looked at the scoring sheets in Sam's hands. "How are the newbies doing?"

"Pretty good so far," Sam saw that Dean turned to look back out at the current match between Cas and Benny. "We have some strong candidates for the final round of testing."

Dean was still staring at the two men fighting, obviously enraptured by the movement.

"Did you hear me Dean?"

"Yeah, sure." Dean replied still distracted by the match.

Sam had to admit it was more entertaining than watching the candidates compete. He noted that Benny was actually struggling to gain the upper hand against Cas. Sam was also sure that Dean hadn't watched a match that closely the entire day.

It was another thing in the growing list of Dean's odd behaviors.

Sam studied the match, then his brother, and finally the match again. Dean wasn't watching both people; his gaze only followed one of them. Cas.

Everything suddenly made sense. All the changes started a little after Cas came to the Manor. At some point, Sam knew they had apologized and were now friends.

Dean seemed his happiest after spending a long time with Cas.

"Oh my gosh. You like him. You like Cas."

"What?! No. I don't- I," Dean sputtered. He crossed his arms and pouted like a child. "I don't like Cas, Sammy."

Dean's denial was all the proof Sam needed to prove his conclusion.

"I can see the way you look at him, Dean. Stop denying it."

His brother's face turned bright red, but his brows furrowed in concentration like he was trying to figure himself out. Maybe Dean didn't even realize he had fallen for Cas.

Sam caught Cas peeking over in their direction. He thought back to when he and Cas were watching the beginning of training. Castiel's expression while watching Dean mirrored Dean's expression while he was watching Cas.

Another thing fell into place.

"Cas is just a friend." Dean didn't look like he believed his own words.

"If it makes you feel any better, I'm pretty sure Cas likes you too."

"That's not...he can't...Cas hated me. I've only known him a month."

"And now you two act like you've known each other your entire lives. Stranger things have happened."

"Fine. I'm not not admitting to anything, I-"

"Like him."

"Yes," Dean answered quietly. He started to play with the long blades of grass near his feet.

"Maybe even love?"

"I don't know about that, Sammy."

Sam could tell his brother was resisting the urge to look back up at Cas.

"I think he's good for you. Cas has already changed you, for the better, in what? Two weeks?" Dean nodded. "But, if you want whatever's going on between you two to work, you're gonna have to tell him."

His brother's head whipped around to look Sam in the eye. "I can't, Sammy." He sounded more dejected than angry.

"And I don't just mean your feelings for Cas. You knew you were going to have to tell him at some point. Cas can't stay in the dark forever."

"If I tell Cas about the library, he'll hate me and want to leave."

"Or he will understand why you didn't tell him and stay. He could even help us."

"And go against everything he's learned. Yeah, that's gonna work out well." Dean was starting to get frustrated with Sam again.

"It doesn't matter if Cas ends up doing terrible to us, he still deserves the right to know."

Dean physically deflated. He knew his brother was right. "Fine. I'll tell him, but give me a couple days."

Sam knew Dean would keep his promise. When everyone was leaving training, Sam tried not to look too triumphant.

* * *

><p>Dean surprised Cas a few days later when he showed up at Castiel's door again instead of Jo.<p>

"I need to show you something." It looked like it pained Dean to say the words. "Come with me."

He had been avoiding Cas since the training session, and now was acting like his old self during Castiel's first week at the Manor.

Cas unwillingly complied. He figured stress of the upcoming ball was starting to take a toll on Dean. He wouldn't want to publicly celebrate his mother's death either.

Dean lead Cas through a series of stairs and hallways until they finally stopped in front of a set of heavy wooden doors that were almost identical to the others throughout the Manor.

Castiel was not expecting to see library that he had never able to find on his on, behind the doors when Dean opened them.

The massive room was at least three stories tall with shelves along the walls from the floor to the ceiling. A metal spiral staircase in the far corner lead up to a walkway on the third level, and sliding ladders were attached to the walls to reach to books on the highest shelves on the first two stories. Old leather chairs and couches rested with a few lamps on one end of the room, and the other side contained long tables stacked high with books. The glass ceiling bathed the whole space in warm natural light.

Castiel rushed to the wall of books closest to him. He had never seen anything like it. Leather bound books from before the Third War rested next to the newest tablets preloaded with information. Entire collections of tomes and volumes and series were neatly organized in rows along the walls. Some of the books looked like they had never been opened. Others had their covers worn and their spines crack similar to Dean's little red book that was still sitting on the corner of Castiel's nightstand. Cas even found a section of shelves filled with novels for children.

Not even the library at Academy or in the Capital could compete with the Winchester's collection.

"This is amazing, Dean."

"My family has been collecting books since the end of the war, but this isn't what I wanted to show you." Dean walked over to where the wall was partially hidden by the staircase. He pulled down on a book on the shelf and part of the shelves swung outward. Dean gestured Castiel inside. "This is what I wanted you to see."

The hidden area was less of a room and more of a large closet. There was enough space for the walls to be lined with shelves full of books like the rest of the library and a table with a few chairs.

Cas thought it was just an extension of the larger library until he took a closer look at the titles of the books resting on the shelves.

Cas wanted to deny what he saw. There was no logical reason for the Commander and his family to own books published by people apart of the Union resistance movement. Castiel learned from his father that false information like that should be destroyed on sight. Cas scanned a few more titles and recognized books and authors banned for promoting ideas that went against what the Union stood for.

"What is all this, Dean?"

"The truth."

"I- I don't understand."

Dean looked at Castiel in the eye. "You don't have to, just look at them, read a few, and know that I would never lie to you. You deserve to know what's really happening in the world."

Cas hesitated before nodding. Nothing Dean said made sense, but Dean left before Cas could ask him more questions.

Castiel didn't know where to start, so he grabbed the closest thing to him. It was a report of all the crop production the from the countryside in last twenty years. At first Castiel thought there were two identical reports for each growing season, and then he noticed the numbers between the pages didn't add up. One side suggested the harvests produced the average amount predicted for that year, and the other showed a decrease in food production that continued to fall as the years progressed. The first report boasted the official Union seal; the second supposedly came from the farmers themselves.

The deeper Cas dove into the forbidden information, the more it made sense over the things Castiel was taught growing up.

The small table soon filled with open books as Castiel racked his mind comparing the things he thought to be true and the things that were starting to look more like the actual truth. When Castiel found a book depicting various way the Union used propaganda to cheat the entire world, it was starting to get hard to reject what the information said.

Bobby's words filtered in with the others flying around in his head. _Pretty soon you're gonna have to figure out what you believe for yourself._

Castiel realized he had seen the signs the entire time, but chose instead to deny them. Everything he knew before was now one big lie. He really had become just another brainwashed soldier in the Union's army of deception.

Dean found Cas sitting on the cold hard floor with his knees pulled to his chest, tears in his eyes, and thin novel in his hands.

As soon as Cas had seen the tiny book, his world had finally completely shattered. Anna and Gabriel Milton had written it. They called their father out for all terrible things he had done as a general for the Union

Dean waited patiently for Cas to speak.

Castiel finished the book and hid his head in his arms. "What do you do when your whole life has been one huge lie?"

Dean went to stand in front of Cas and held out a hand to help him stand.

Cas looked up with watery eyes. "What do I do, Dean?"

"Let's get out of here." Dean spoke softly. "First you need to eat, then we can talk."

Castiel forced himself to swallow a few spoonfuls of soup. Everytime he did, his stomach rolled and threatened to bring it all back up.

Dean let Cas have time to organize his thoughts.

"Are Anna and Gabriel really part of the rebellion against the Union?" Castiel's voice cracked as he tried to hold fresh tears back. He hated feeling so pathetic.

"Do you trust me?"

Cas nodded, but he didn't even himself at the moment.

"Yes. Anna and your brother Gabriel were part of the resistance movement. That's why Crowley arrested Anna and brought her to the Manor. But that's only part of the story."

Castiel felt his insides twist. He didn't think he could handle any new truths.

"Talks about rebellion have been happening for generations. Before my parents were married, my mother was a part of the resistance, and often tried to speak out against the Union. She kept it a secret from my father, but when he found out about it, he started to actually help her efforts. That's why there's all those people living in the village in the woods. They came to us for protection, because they knew my parents didn't like the Union. My mother was trying to make the country a better place and it got her killed."

Cas heard Dean's voice start to waver at the end. He had so many questions forming on the tip of his tongue but didn't interrupt Dean.

"Her death was made to look like an accident, and that's went in the reports and on the news. But only Sam, my father, Bobby and Ellen, a few of the Guards, me, and now you know that she was murdered. My father spent the last two years of his life searching for my mother's murderer, until he finally died from exhaustion and a broken heart. No one except the the people I trust the most know that the Commander is dead too."

Castiel's head began to spin. "Your father's dead? But how is-"

"I was already helping my dad a lot when I was eighteen. My father was never the same after my mother died, he was misdirecting so much of his energy that he'd forgotten about running the country long before he died. Bobby's been helping cover up the fact that I've been the one making decisions and reporting to the Union. When I turn twenty-one in January, I can officially announce my position as Commander."

"But why doesn't anyone know about this? Governing a nation is too much for a teenager."

"Because I had no choice, Cas. Because I have to protect Sam, and protect what my parents started, and protect the people that are oblivious to the destruction around them. I just need to hold out for a few more months. Then everything will be okay."

Castiel didn't know what to think. He felt lost, but more importantly he felt empathy for Dean. It was clear to see Dean was just as lost as he was. The weight of the world was too much for one person, and since Cas had to rebuild his world, he didn't see why he could help Dean fix his.

"I want to help."

Dean looked surprised. "I thought you'd never want to never want to speak to me again, after lying so much to you."

"No, Dean. You're the only person who _hasn't_ lied to me. You helped me, showed me the truth. And now I want to help you."

Cas and Dean accidentally fell asleep on the couches in the library. Sam found them and made them back to their own rooms to get cleaned up.

Everything thing Cas saw was now viewed through a new perspective. It wasn't formed from years at Academy or lessons from his father. Castiel thought for himself, free from the mold he spent years trying to fit into.

Dean let Cas in on everything he did after the confession in the library. He asked Cas to join him in meetings with Bobby and wanted his opinions on how to fix the problems the nation faced.

Cas was expecting something to change between him and Dean. He thought Dean was waiting for something to happen too. But then there was nothing standing in between them anymore. Castiel could honestly admit they had grown closer instead of drifting apart.

One afternoon while Dean and Cas were studying maps of the territories in far north, two Guards entered the room. Castiel had met all the the Guards at the Manor by that time, but these two were unknown to him. One of them was young and held a several notebooks close to his chest, the other was extremely tall with long limbs, big eyes, and a tiny chin. Everything looked out of proportion.

Dean recognized them instantly and left his seat swiftly to greet the two men.

"Garth, Kevin, this is my friend Cas." Dean said as he introduced the Guards to Cas. "Cas, this is Garth and Kevin. They are my liaisons at Union Headquarters. Garth specializes in negotiations, and Kevin is a translator."

Castiel had always wondered what it would be like to go to the Union Headquarters. Each nation sent representatives to discuss politics under the watchful eye of Union officials. Very few people out of the selected group ever knew what went on in the inside.

"Do you have any news?" Dean asked the two Guards.

The taller one, Garth, looked over cautiously to Cas, "Does he know?"

"Yes. Anything you want to say to me can be said in front of Cas."

"Garth and I stumbled upon some information about a possible plan for the Union to increase uncover patrols searching for protesters," said Kevin.

"Thank for you the warning. I'll make sure to get the warning out, and I'm guessing you're going back to Headquarters after the party?"

Both Guards nodded.

Dean told them to take some time to relax before they had to leave again, and then dismissed them from the room. Cas went back to the table covered in maps, with Dean following closely behind him.

They worked in comfortable silence the rest of the night until Jo came to collect them for dinner.

...

Castiel woke up to loud and incessant knocking on his door. When he opened it, a frantic looking Dean stood on the other side.

"It's three days until the ball, and I just realized you don't have anything appropriate to wear." Dean brushed past Cas on his way to the closet. A few seconds later Dean re-emerged and threw a pile of clean clothes at Cas. "Get dressed. We have to go see Missouri."

Castiel didn't know what to expect when they arrived at the woman's tiny house in the village. All Dean told him was that Missouri was a seamstress for his mother, and after her death retired to the village behind the Manor. And although she didn't work full-time any more, Missouri still helped the Winchester brothers whenever they needed her. She was the one who repaired his riding cloak.

The old woman smiled warmly at the pair when she opened the door. "I was wondering when you'd come back, Dean. I need to see if your suit fits properly after all the changes I made." Then she directed her focus on Cas. "You must be Castiel. I've been waiting to meet you. Did you like the cloak?"

"Yes, very much. Thank you for fixing it."

"No, it was my pleasure." She lead them into front parlor-like room. "I'm guessing Castiel needs a suit?"

Dean shamefully nodded his head.

"You better be lucky, boy, that I worked for your mamma and've known you since the day you were born." Missouri scolded Dean, but when she turned to Cas she directed a motherly smile at him. "Come on, Honey. Let's go find you something to wear."

Missouri had him stand in the middle of a room across the hall from where she left Dean waiting alone. She dressed Cas in the skeleton of a jacket and pants, then started to pin to different pieces to it to create a custom tailored suit. Castiel had never worn something so carefully constructed. Missouri's skill and decades of working was evident in how quickly everything was coming together.

Castiel watched as the woman's long skirt and apron swirled around her legs when she puttered around the room gathering various tools and pieces of cloth. At first, Castiel thought the suit was purely black, until he saw it had dark blue undertones in the sunlight.

"You'll have to forgive Dean," she said in the middle of working. "He's always been too stubborn for his own good. It always takes forever for things to get through his thick head."

Missouri eventually took the jacket and pants off of Cas, so she could properly sew it together. She told him it would be finished sometime in the next day and that she would find someone to deliver it to the Manor.

Then Missouri called Dean in for his final fitting. Cas could hear her admonishing Dean from the other room, but the words were too muffled to figure out specifically what Missouri was telling Dean.

When Castiel woke the next morning, the suit was hanging in the front of his closet. Someone had even laid out a matching undershirt, waistcoat, shoes and tie for him to wear. As he looked over Missouri's work, Cas noticed she had added subtle embroidered details that echoed the star pattern on his cloak. He thought Anna's ring would look good with the suit and slipped the chain around his neck for the first time in weeks

During the rest of the day, the entire Manor was filled with people rushing around to finish the final preparations. Most of the attention was focused on the ballroom and extended outwards. The windows were washed again, all the crystal and gold was reshined, the floors were swept again. Castiel made the mistake of entering the kitchen and got roped in helping Ellen and Jo polish silver platters and checking all the champagne flutes for smudges. The Manor's main foyer was the next busiest place. Castiel avoided going anywhere near it after he learned his lesson in the kitchen.

All the scrambling paid off in the end. The Manor looked like the definition of perfection the time the first guests passed through gates the day of the party.

Castiel felt out of place at first. He blended in the large mass of people forming in the ballroom, but he didn't feel like he belonged with them anymore. Cas wondered if the men and women standing next to him knew the things he did.

Dean's nervousness in the days leading up to the ball was nonexistent as he acted like the perfect host. Whenever Dean could, he introduced Cas to people who he'd befriended in the last couple years. Chuck was a journalist for the Union and hated his job. He also wasn't afraid to tell Cas his grievances against the Union in a place that everyone else could hear them.

Cas only managed to talk to Dean's friend, Charlie, a software engineer who had help Ash design the Manor's security system, for a few minutes because eventually the resemblance to his older sister grew too much for him. The other woman, Pamela, that Dean had introduced to Cas was interesting to say the least.

He saw people he knew from the Manor in the room too. Bobby was conversing with a group of older men, and Sam was giving puppy-dog looks to a girl with long, curly blonde hair.

Jo, Ash, and Benny were dressed up and undercover. They never let Cas, Sam, or Dean out of their sight for more than a few seconds at a time.

Cas managed to speak to Dean a few times in between the time it took for the small orchestral ensemble to move into the next piece and an old friend of Mary Winchester asked to dance with Dean. In one of the breaks, Dean told him that Sam was talking to Jess, the girl his brother had fallen in love when they were only children. To Castiel it seemed like the attraction between the two teenagers had never faded. They were never far from each other's side.

Castiel became a people watcher the rest. He stayed near the edges of the crowd, catching parts of conversations as people passed by him.

At one point, Cas noticed Dean slip outside onto the ballroom's low terrace. He knew it was getting close to the time for Dean's speech. Dean needed to apologize for his father's absence, and say a few words in his mother's memory. As Castiel made his way outside to join Dean, he thought he caught a glimpse of Crowley wading in and out of the masses near the walls of the ballroom. Cas didn't remember Dean mentioning Crowley's name on the list of Union officials attending the party.

Seeing Dean outside reminded Castiel of something, but he couldn't quite grasp the memory. The setting sun silhouetted Dean's body against a backdrop of dark trees and the sunset reflected onto the lake's water. Cas could hear the music from inside drifting along in the breeze.

"Are you okay, Dean?" Castiel stood close enough to Dean so that their shoulders were touching.

The man drew his attention away from whatever he had been staring at. His green eyes were clear and bright. "I just needed some time to think."

They looked out at the setting sun together. Cas could feel every tiny point of contact between Dean's body and his own. The strange feeling that had been residing in his chest clicked into place.

"Can I ask you something?"

Castiel thought back to the first time Dean asked him that question. "Yes."

"And you promise to answer honestly?"

"Of course, Dean."

"I'm...Do you-" Dean paused as he struggled to figure out what to say. Cas had never seen him at such a loss for words. "Have you ever thought about going back to your old life? Back when you lived with your sister and trained at the Academy? Would you go back if given the option?"

Cas thought about his answer thoroughly before replying. "I did at first, but then I realized my life this past month at the Manor has been better than the past nineteen years. So, no, even given the option, I wouldn't want to go back to my old life."

"I just want you to be happy."

"Dean, I am happy. I'm happy here."

"Even with me around?"

"Especially with you. Nothing would be the same without you in my life at the moment."

"So you'd be willing to permanently stay at the Manor...with me."

"I would love to, Dean."

Dean's face lit up at Castiel's words.

"Then there's something else you need to know." He sounded like he was trying to keep his hopefulness contained. "Cas, I-"

A Guard walking out onto the terrace interrupted Dean. "An urgent message was left for Castiel. It from someone named Anna." The Guard handed Cas a small slip of paper. His heart sunk the more he read.

"What's wrong, Cas."

"Anna says she's being watched by two men in Union uniforms. She needs me."

"Let me come with you. I can help."

"She said to come alone, so I wouldn't attract attention. Besides, your place is here, Dean. I never really belonged in that world."

Dean's whole person changed. His back and shoulders stiffened, and his face became carefully blank. He took a step back from Cas. "No, you're right."

"Dean, I didn't mean it in that way. Maybe she'll be fine. I'll stay at the Manor."

Dean slowly shook his head. His reply made Castiel's heart clench, "But you did mean it like that. Now, go."

Castiel took a few steps towards the stairs that lead down to the garden and stables but stopped. "What were you going to say before you were interrupted."

"It doesn't matter now."

Cas didn't trust himself to look back again at Dean. It would've been impossible for him to leave if he saw the sadness etched across Dean's face.

...

Anna's house was dark when he entered. The letter said his sister would be waiting for him inside. Cas checked all the rooms, but no one was home.

A loud crashing sound coming from the the small barn behind the house drew Castiel outside. He thought that maybe Anna was hiding in there. It was too dark to see inside the barn.

"Anna?"

She gasped from somewhere inside. "No Castiel. Don't co-"

Rough hands shoved Cas into the barn before Anna could finish her warning. A final _thump_ filled the air, and then everything went completely silent.

Castiel whipped around and lunged for the door, but it was locked and barred from the outside. He rattled the metals bars on the windows in frustration.

A figure stepped out from the shadows of Anna's house. It was Crowley.

"Don't bother trying, Castiel. Dean's going to die, and you can't do anything to stop it."

Cas shook the heavy doors again, but they didn't budge. "Let me go!"

He could see the light fading from the sky through the bars covering windows of the barn. Castiel thought of Dean standing alone on the balcony, the joy slipping from his face as Dean let him walk away. Cas should fought have fought harder to stay.

"I have men on way to the Manor right now. Even if you did get out of there, you'd be too late." Crowley looked too smug.

The man walked away and left Cas sitting in the dark with his sister.

"I'm sorry. I tried to warn you.. " Cas could see tears forming in her eyes. "I'm so sorry."

Cas couldn't breathe. "Anna, I have to get to Dean. I need to save him." He slowly slid to the dirt floor.

"Why have you started to care so much?" His sister joined him on the ground.

"Because I...I love him Anna." Cas had never left relieved before, but his worry for Dean increased.

Sounds of someone trying to open the door pulled Cas out of his troubling thoughts.

"Jo?" The Guard stood in the opened doorway. Castiel was never as glad to see her as he was in that moment. "How did you find us?"

"I followed you after I saw you leave the balcony. I want to know why you broke Dean's heart."

"What? I-" Cas paused to pulled Anna up from the ground. "That doesn't matter right now, I have to save Dean."

Cas ran to his horse before either of the girls could stop him.

It started to storm as Castiel raced back to the Manor. He knew Anna and Jo were trailing behind him.

But they didn't understand what was about to happen. They didn't know everything had been set up so Dean would be alone. Alone long enough for Dean to be killed.

The Manor was in utter chaos when he finally made it back. Union Officers had the Manor surrounded. Cas had to fight his way to the ballroom through the crowd of escaping civilians. He saw the Manor Guards desperately trying to hold the Union officers back.

Cas didn't see Dean anywhere in the room. Dread filled his body like lead weights. He hoped Dean and the others had gotten to a safe place. Castiel couldn't lose any of them.

After searching the entire ballroom, he bolted across the dancefloor to the doors leading out to where Cas had last seen Dean.

He searched the back gardens, though the pouring rain was making it difficult to see any further than a few yards in the distance. Relief flooded his system when he spotted Dean, unharmed, walking from the stables to the trees at the end of the gardens.

It left again when Cas saw one of Crowley's men following behind Dean.

Instinct took control of Castiel's body as he flew across the gardens to Dean. Cas thought he heard someone calling out to him, but nothing mattered at the moment except for Dean. He didn't want to be haunted by the feeling of failing Dean if he wasn't able to save him.

Everything unfolded in front of Cas in slow motion.

First the Officer aimed a gun at the Dean's Back. Cas called out to Dean, but it was raining too hard for Dean to hear him.

Dean turned around too late.

He threw himself in front of Dean, and the Officer pulled the trigger.

Castiel's body burst with pain until everything went numb.

A second shot rang out as Cas crumbled to the hard ground. He knew Dean was yelling for help and talking to him, but he couldn't distinguish Dean's voice from the blood rushing in his ears. He could feel his body being carefully cradled to Dean's chest, and the man putting pressure on his stomach. But Cas couldn't feel the warmth from Dean's hands.

"It was my turn to save you." Like the time he was attacked by the wolf, Cas knew he about to die. He didn't know if the words ever made it out of his mouth. "I love you, Dean."

Everything slowly faded to black.

A single tear fell from the corner of Dean's eye. It splashed onto Castiel's cheek.

"No, Cas. Stay with me. Please." His normally steady voice cracked. "You can't leave me. You promised you'd stay."

He hugged Castiel body closer to him and yelled at anyone who dared to come near them.

"Please, Cas. Don't die. You can't.

Dean's whole world was crashing down. He never got the chance to tell Cas he loved him.

* * *

><p>"That's terrible! Love stories can't end like that, Mommy. They have to live happily ever after and get married and do gross grown up stuff. Dean and Cas can't have a happy ending if one of them is dead!" The little girl angrily whispered to her mother. She didn't want to wake up her little brother already asleep beside her.<p>

"You didn't let me finish." The mother said. "If you'd let me continue, you would've found out that Cas didn't die. Jody and Bobby managed to revive him. Once Cas got better, they both admited they love each other. Then on Dean's twenty-first birthday, he announces the start of the Revolution, and his allies around the world revolted with him to dismantle the Union. Eventually Dean and Cas got married and had their own happy ending."

The girl looked puzzled. "Is that all true? About Granddad and Grandpa? And Uncle Sammy and everyone else? Is that really how they really fell in love?"

"Yes, all that did really happen. Now it's time for you to go to sleep. The story is finished."

Out of all the love stories the woman knew, the story about her fathers would always be her favorite. Nothing in all of history could boast itself better than the love between Dean Winchester and Castiel Novak.

"Mamma."

"Yes, sweetie?"

"If that's the story about how Grandpa and Granddad met each other, then when do you come in?" The girl's words were slightly slurred with sleep. She slowly rubbed her tired eyes.

The mother laughed softly.

"That, my darling, is a story for another night."


End file.
